


We're Blooming Together

by RueSinger



Series: WBT [1]
Category: Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, College, Crushes, Dialuci is implied (may become more prominent in later chapters, Drinking, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Family Dynamics, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Human AU, Humor, Longing, M/M, Nausea, Pining, Romantic Fluff, Romantic Tension, Secret Crush, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, au!human, the nausea warning is only for the ending of chapter 8
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:14:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 46,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27051028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RueSinger/pseuds/RueSinger
Summary: Asmodeus has always liked Solomon. He was Asmo's 'playground boyfriend' when they were younger and he'd follow him anywhere. But things change and people get older. Solomon only wants to be friends, and even though Asmo has accepted this he can't help the feelings that still lurk deep inside him. One day he gets a note from a secret admirer, and Asmo finds himself obsessed with finding out who they are.
Relationships: Asmodeus & Solomon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Asmodeus/Solomon (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!), Diavolo/Lucifer (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)
Series: WBT [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2107488
Comments: 136
Kudos: 160





	1. It Started on the Playground

**Author's Note:**

> I'm a fluffy sap. Anyways I hope you all enjoy. Tags will be added as I add more chapters. This was just too cute to not do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a fluffy sap. Anyways I hope you all enjoy. Tags will be added as I add more chapters. This was just too cute to not do.
> 
> If you want to find me or request something of me you can find me over on ruewrites on tumblr :)

“ _No_! No no! I don’ **_wanna_** go home! I wanna stay with Solomon!” 

Little Asmo’s face was red and blotchy as he tried to squirm out of Lucifer’s arms and back down to where Solomon was. The young boy was huddled close to his nanny, partially hidden behind their leg. He had met Asmo next to the swings, far away from the other kids. Solomon had never been particularly good at socializing, much less making friends. Honestly if the child could have it his way, he’d stay inside all day with his nanny reading him stories. But they insisted that “A growing boy needed a little sunshine and some friends that could keep him company.” 

Lucky for him, he didn’t need to be good at making friends when it came to Asmo. The boy had made a beeline to him almost immediately when his family came to the park. With Big brother Lucifer trying to keep an eye on all of them, it was easy to scurry away every now and again. Most of the time his attention would be on Mammon, who would get himself into some sort of trouble and almost give Lucifer a heart attack. Lucifer  _ hated  _ driving one of his brothers to the ER especially if it could have been avoided. Of course, learning wasn’t one of Mammon’s strong suits and usually he would end up in some sort of cast or sling every other month. 

“Hi! I’m Asmodeus!” Asmo chirped, eyes trained on Solomon as the breeze pushed him gently on the swing. For a moment, Solomon stopped. He turned to look at his nanny on a park bench not too far away. They smiled at him and motioned for him to talk to the other child. “Well? Doncha’ got a name? You can call me Asmo if you wanna, a lot of people do, but I really like my full name. Can you not talk? Beel ‘n Belphie can’t talk yet but they’re little, but you’re not little like them. Can’t you talk?”

“I can talk,” Solomon muttered softly, fingers clenching against the chains of the swing. This boy talked a lot more than Solomon was used to. Silence usually filled his days with the occasional hum of the TV in the background, and he was okay with that. This was unusual and uncomfortable. “And I have a name. My name’s Solomon.”

He looked down at the ground as he spoke, but that didn’t stop the other boy. “Solomon?” Asmo repeated, leaning over in a rather awkward position and tilting his head upwards to look the other in the eye. “I’ve never met anyone named  _ Solomon  _ before,” he said, face scrunching up a bit, in silent contemplation.”

“Sol-lo-mon-nuh.  _ Solomon _ …. Solomon!” Asmo jumped back with a smile, startling Solomon just a bit, “I guess you’ll be the first Solomon to be my friend!”

“I guess.”

“You should be happy! You’re the only Solomon, and that means your  _ special _ .” 

Asmo grabbed at Solomon’s hand, almost pulling him off the swing, “You should play with me Solomon! I know how to play the best and funnest games! My brothers never wanna play with me because they’re boring or too little, but you won’t be like them!” 

And so Solomon made his first friend. Of course, it wasn’t like he was a willing participant in the friendship, but Asmo never really gave Solomon time to speak. The boy spent most of his time telling him what to do or how to play his games right, and Solomon spent most of his time not really understanding what Asmo was talking about. Just when he thought he understood, Asmo was taking his hand and dragging him somewhere else. Slowly, Solomon grew accustomed to the way things were going between him and Asmodeus. He really seemed to love Solomon’s attention, clapping with delight every time Solomon followed along with one of his little games. 

“Pick that flower for me,” Asmo said, pointing to a bright yellow dandelion on the playground’s edge.

“That’s not a flower, it’s a weed,” Solomon frowned. It looked like a flower sure, but dandelions were weeds. Not flowers. 

“I don’t care. It’s pretty and looks like a flower, so just… Just pick me a flower!” Asmo huffed and crossed his arms, cheeks puffed up in a pout.

Solomon laughed and stood up, walking to the playground’s edge. Asmodeus wanted a flower… He looked around the area for a moment before his eyes rested on a patch of flowers growing on the other side of the fence row, just out of sight from where he and Asmodeus had been sitting. It’s petals were a bright yellow and the centers were pink. The edges looked frilled and reminded Solomon of the pie crusts his nanny would sometimes make. That was Asmodeus’ flower. After making sure no one was around to see him, Solomon reached through the iron bars and grabbed one, he heard the snap of the stem and quickly brought it back over to the other boy.

When Asmo saw it, his pout completely vanished, “Oh….”

“See? That’s  _ a lot  _ better than a weed,” Solomon proclaimed, puffing out his chest a bit.

For the first time that day. Asmo was silent.

Then Lucifer came to collect Asmo, and it was more than obvious he didn’t want to leave.

“ _ Please Luci _ ,” he sniffled, “Just a few more minutes!” The commotion had quickly brought Solomon’s nanny over to see what all of the commotion was about. They were honestly surprised to see the young man with the rest of the kids. He couldn’t have been much older than seventeen.

“Asmodeus, it’ll get dark soon. The twins need to sleep and-”

“ _ Lucifer! _ I need to charge my phone! It’s gonna die soon!”   
  


“Lucifer! Satan punched me!”

“Did not! Mammon’s just a wimp and a liar!”

“Am not!”

“Are too!”   
  


“ _ Nu-uh _ !”

“ _ Uh-huh _ !”

“You’re just-!”

“ _ Enough! _ ” Lucifer groaned, rubbing his temples, “We need to go home now Asmodeus. No more few minutes. Now say goodbye.”

“ _ Wait _ ,” the nanny spoke up, “Lucifer, perhaps, if it’s alright, we could schedule another playdate? Solomon here, well, I think he’d like to see Asmodeus again. Wouldn’t you Solomon?” Solomon looked up at Asmo for a brief moment, before turning to his nanny and nodding slowly.

They smiled and quickly pulled out their phone, “If you wouldn’t mind giving me your number, I can send you a text and we can set up another playdate.”

Lucifer looked down at Asmo’s big teary eyes, and at the perennial still clutched in his hands. There was really only one thing to do here. Besides, having some friends (who could potentially be good influences) would be good for Asmo.

*********

“Luci is my oldest brother, he looks after all of us, sometimes he’s a little mean, but he makes in up to us by cookies or sometimes he’ll read us extra bedtime stories. He’s gonna go to college and get a adult job so he can get us a big house. Mammon can be okay sometimes, but he also protects us from bullies Levi plays lots of games. He’s really good at them, sometimes he lets some of us sit in his lap and play too. Satan is really smart, he reads a lot, and sometimes he’ll let me listen. His books are are boring but don’t tell him that. Belphie and Beel just learned to walk not too long ago, but you can’t really talk to them.”

“What about your parents?”

Asmo had been going on and on about his family as he gently touched the petals of his newest flower. Solomon gave him one every time they met, even if Asmo forgot to ask him. 

“Oh… They took Lily one day and never came back. She was our sister… So now we live with some guardians. They don’t really do much for us though,” Asmo murmured, holding the flower a little closer, “What about you? Where are your parents?”

“Never really been around. My nanny stays with me most of the time, but that’s it. Sometimes I think that they’ll go away and never come back.”

“That’s what mine did.”

They were both quiet for a moment, Asmo huddled close to Solomon, gently caressing the petals of the flower before him. He liked Solomon a lot… “Don’t leave me okay?” he sniffled, “Because I’ll cry if you do… I’d cry harder than I ever did before.”

“I won’t leave you. Not in a bajillion years.”

“Not even a hundred bajillion?”   
  


“Not even then!”

Asmo giggled and wrapped his arms around Solomon. He knew he would keep his promise. He just knew it. Even if a hundred bajillion years passed, Solomon would still be with him. “Okay, in that case,” he tapped Solomon’s shoulder, “Tag! You’re it!” Before screaming and running out of the playground tunnel.

“Nuh uh! No fair! I’m gonna catch you Asmodeus!”

Lucifer watched from a little bit away. It was nice to see his brothers happy. They were kids (not that he wasn’t he just… Forgot from time to time, and besides his brothers needed to come first) they needed to have some fun.

“Isn’t it cute? They’re just little kindergarten boyfriends,” the Ash grinned as they sat down on a chair opposite from Lucifer. They handed him a cup of coffee and turned back towards the kids, “I haven’t ever seen Solomon like this before. He’s usually so reserved and quiet. He’s actually acting like a kid for once.”

“Usually people think Asmodeus is a little too much. I like seeing my brothers happy,” he said, sipping at the cup in his hands.

“If you ever want to, you know, do fun stuff, I don’t mind if you wanna drop them off. You’re young, that’s-”

“No, it’s fine. I can do it. I’ve done well so far and kept them safe, so I can keep doing it,” he said. There was an air of finality about his words. Lucifer’s mind wouldn’t be changed, “But, if Asmodeus wants to come over and spend time with Solomon, he most certainly can… Or if Solomon wants to come over.”

“Gotchu!” Solomon grinned, wrapping his arms tightly around Asmodeus as he giggled and squealed. He wasn’t going to let go, and he didn’t mind. They were going to be together forever.


	2. Your Secret

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your support so far! This is going to be my first multichapter story (the other one I wrote was originally supposed to be a oneshot, but then I thought it would be better to split it up into parts). Thank you for taking the time to read it and follow it. I hope I can create something that you all can enjoy. I'm having fun so far. Everything is appreciated!

Asmo couldn’t decide if he thought Solomon’s lips would be rough or soft. Honestly, either one would be fine. What ultimately mattered was he was a good kisser. Of course, Asmo didn’t know really, but he’d heard from his past girlfriends. He’d heard  _ more  _ from them as well. He dreamed of him every now and again, sometimes they were odd but other times he could feel his lips on his own, and how his hands felt on his hips. Not that it meant much. Dreams were dreams, and Solomon wasn’t interested in anything more than friends. Of course Asmo had had a crush on him, one that lasted for a long time, and it had been bad enough that he spent hours sobbing in his room when he got his first girlfriend. Slowly he got over it and started dating other people. Guys, girls, didn’t matter. Yeah he still had a little thing for Solomon, but it didn’t mean much in the long run. 

Solomon just wanted to be friends, and that was it. 

Still didn’t stop the dreams. They were always simple, Solomon’s hands traveling up his shirt and gently brushing against his hips, light kisses going up his neck until he could whisper sweet words of affirmation and love in his ear, and then his lips on his-

And then a blaring alarm.

Asmo groaned as he rolled over in bed, hand roaming the counter until he found his phone and was able to turn off the offending noise. With a shudder, he wrapped the blankets around himself tighter. Getting up would be a hassle today. It was cold inside and out and Asmo wanted nothing more than to stay in his warm bed for a little longer, but he had a routine to keep. He slipped his feet into the slippers he kept neatly next to his bed. For a moment he contemplated bringing the blanket with him but ultimately deciding against it. He certainly didn’t want to snag the silk on the floor. 

Even if he was sluggish now his beauty routine would be sure to wake him up, it always did. Asmo had a few pictures framed, some taped, next to his vanity. Some were of him and his brothers, some were him and Solomon, others were individuals of them, or some group combination. Some would say that Asmo gave his affections out too easily and that it was easiest bought if you had a pretty face and sweet enough words on your tongue. While that was somewhat true, only those Asmo truly loved got a space next to his bureau. Each photo not only held one of his loved ones, but a dear memory as well. 

Some past lovers had had an issue with some of the pictures, mainly those that involved Solomon. Or maybe it was just Solomon in general. Or maybe it was the special relationship they had. Asmodeus had never been afraid to show his affections and he’s always been physical. Especially with Solomon.

He didn’t really understand why some had had an issue with it in the first place.

Asmo never hid how special Solomon was to him. They’d known each other for almost their entire lives. Hell, they’d gone to their senior prom together! As friends of course. Asmo had been broken up with the week before, and in the middle of running mascara and messy eyeshadow, Solomon had gently asked if he wanted him to take him. It was a bit of a fiasco really. Neither of them matched each other, and then the corsage (that they talked about getting for the aesthetic) didn’t match either of them. Despite it all, Asmo instead in joking tones that they made quite the stunning couple who took some rather stunning pictures together. They were some of Asmo’s favorites too. 

He opened his bedroom door carefully. He would never forget the day he found himself covered in paint because Mammon forgot about an assignment he had due that day. It had completely ruined his  _ entire  _ look. Asmo probably would have killed him if Lucifer hadn’t intervened. Speaking of Lucifer-

His oldest brother mulled about the kitchen, filling his traveller mug with coffee and wrapping up his breakfast to take to work. Beel was shoveling eggs into his mouth, toast, bacon, and bananas surrounding his plate in line to be eaten and a Belphie slumped against his shoulder. Belphie had never been a morning person. Getting him up for school had always been a struggle to the point where Lucifer had considered getting him into  _ any  _ form of school transportation in the morning a success since the twins had been in middle school. Asmo had spent his senior year driving the twins to school with him, just so they’d all have a little extra time to get ready (or in Belphie’s case, sleep). They’d struck up a deal where Asmo wouldn’t tell Lucifer about Belphie going to school in his pajamas if Belphie didn’t snitch on all the times Asmo snuck out. In Asmo’s personal opinion, it worked out pretty nicely for both of them.

“Good morning Lucifer! Beel, Belphie,” Asmo sang. He ruffled the twins’ hair, earning a grumble from Belphie and a stifled “good morning” from Beel. 

“Good morning Asmodeus.” Lucifer turned his head to look at Asmo as he popped one of the bagels into the toaster and setting the cream cheese on the counter. “Any plans or can we expect you home for dinner tonight?”

“As far as I’m aware,” he giggled. 

Then Lucifer gave him  _ the look _ .

“ _ Fine. Yes Dad _ . I’ll be home,” Asmo huffed.

Lucifer rolled his eyes before setting the coffee pot back into place. “I could do without the sass, but thank you. Satan is on duty tonight, if anything changes text him,” he said, packing up his things nice and orderly. He turned around and addressed Asmo in a tone he and the rest of the brothers had been familiar with.

“And please, keep yourself out of trouble and be safe.”

“I will Luci, promise.”

Campus was always so pretty in the fall. There was one spot that Asmo particularly liked next to the campus gardens. Underneath a large tree sat a wrought iron table with two matching chairs. It felt partially hidden from the rest of campus and was a perfect spot when you wanted to be alone with your thoughts. Asmo liked to sit there to work on some of his more creative assignments. The changing colors of the trees and variety of flora in the garden served as muses for some of his design and had birthed some of his proudest works.

“Asmodeus!” 

Asmo looked up, and his face immediately lit up. Solomon had his bag slumped over his shoulder and a coffee cup in each hand. He placed the cups on the table, sliding one towards Asmodeus before sitting in the chair opposite of him and letting his bag fall to the ground.

Solomon had moved out of his old house and into a small apartment for a change of pace a year or two ago. His roommate Simeon had already been living there with his nephew and had been looking for another person to help split rent once their old roommate moved out. Asmo had seen the place a few times, it was small but Solomon liked his room and how there had been room for a bookshelf and a few of his other things. That didn’t mean that Solomon’s room was neat and organized, but Asmo didn’t blame him for liking the place and Simeon and his nephew were both nice enough. It was also nice when he wanted somewhere to work quietly. 

Asmo picked up the cup Solomon slipped him and sipped at it with a smile. It had whipped cream on top that had a slight pumpkin flavor with cinnamon on top. The drink itself was a sweet and creamy hazelnut. “Oooh they have their fall specials back! You always know just what I want,” Asmo cooed, placing the drink back down, a safe distance from his sketch pad.

“I would hope so, considering I’ve been your errand boy to the campus cafe the past three years.”

“You have more points and perks than I do!”

“Because I keep buying  _ your  _ coffee,” Solomon’s tone was teasing. He never really minded getting Asmodeus’ coffee. He’d been doing things for him for years, but he never minded. Asmodeus’ usually found a way to repay him, but even if he didn’t Solomon would probably still do things for him. It was something he’d done without thinking most of the time, they were always little things that reminded him of Asmodeus. 

Asmodeus had rolled his eyes and taken another sip of his coffee, “So, did you just come by to say hi to little ol’ me in between classes?”

“Well yes, it’s not unusual is it?” he asked, “But I was also hoping to show you something.” Asmo quirked an eyebrow as Solomon started digging around in his bag, pulling out three cups and a marble. He set them up on the table and pointed at the one the marble was under. Asmo could help the smile that spread across his lips, nor the chuckle that escaped him as he played along, keeping an eye on the cup as it spun around on the table. Solomon had gotten into magic tricks sometime in middle school. He always practiced them on Asmodeus, but back then most of them had been little card tricks. He’d always thought it’d been cute.

Asmo pointed at the cup off to the side and Solomon grinned as he lifted it. The other two cups followed, all three empty. “Wait, wait, I think I see it,” Solomon was grinning widely as he reached behind Asmodeus’ ear and brought the marble in front of his face. Asmo broke out into laughter.

“You’re such a  _ nerd _ .”

“And yet you indulge in my interests.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t enjoy them.”

Asmo picked up his pencil back off the table and went back to putting the finishing touches on his newest design. Solomon watched for a moment. He’d always liked Asmodeus’ little designs. They were rather unique and alluring, just like him. “When’s that one due?” 

“It’s part of a collection, so not for a while.  _ Buuuut _ -” he stopped and flipped a few pages back and pointed to another one he’d already finished, “I have this one finished and just need a model. And I still have your measurements from every other time my most wonderful  _ Solomon _ has modeled for me.”

“You used up all your little brother tokens?”

“Unfortunately.”

“And your big brother tokens?”

“Those too. I owe the twins more favors than I’d like to admit.”

Solomon hummed and leaned back in his chair, “I suppose I’d have some free time. Would you need me for your class too?”

“If you don’t mind being my full time model for the semester,” Asmo sang. Solomon usually ended up being his full time model for the semester. Solomon nodded and Asmo squealed in delight almost immediately. “Oh  _ thank you Solomon _ !” he chirped, throwing himself over the table, somehow managing to not knock anything over, “You’re  _ always  _ the best model like ever!”

Solomon coughed.

“And the best friend ever. Of course my best friend would also be my absolute favorite model!” 

Asmo would get to finish his project and spend more time with one of his favorite people in the entire world, of course having Solomon as his model was always a wonderful thing. Plus, he always looked really good in the clothes Asmo made. Like,  _ really  _ good. Sometimes he wondered if his subconscious purposefully made designs that would show off the countless number of tattoos that covered his body. Specifically the ones that would peak out from the collars of his shirts or from behind the cuffs of his sleeves. Solomon would make a really good model… Maybe one day Asmo could convince him to come along and work for him when he made it big one day.

******

Asmo sighed as he slumped onto his bed. He still had some time to himself before he had to meet his brothers for dinner. They usually wouldn’t start until Lucifer got home from work. It wasn’t that they had to wait, they just preferred to eat together when they could. It had been that way ever since they’d been kids and none of them saw a reason to break tradition (even if the brothers didn’t always get along). Folding his legs he went to grab his laptop to attempt to start on a few more assignments for the upcoming week and to update some of his profiles. He wanted to make it into the fashion industry, he needed to keep everything up to date and looking attractive. 

No sooner had Asmo’s laptop left the bag did something else fall out. It was a pink envelope, with his name written in golden cursive on the front. The paper was glossy and sealed on the back with wax. 

Asmo had never gotten a letter before. At least, not one that had been this fancy. 

He carefully picked at the seal, not wanting to destroy something so pretty. 

Unfolding the letter, he couldn’t help but notice a smoky aroma coming from the inside of the envelope. 

_ How could any person ever glow so brightly? _

_ Looking at you, I can’t deny that there must be some form of a higher power _

_ For I refuse to believe that such perfection could be accidental. _

_ Do you realize how truly wonderful you are? _

_ Or that nothing in this life or any other could come close to comparing to your beauty? _

_ I find myself being drawn to you _

_ Like we’re connected by a string of fate. _

_ I want to adore you. _

_ I long to be closer to you. _

_ Would you ever let yourself be mine? _

_ Know that someone admires you in secret. _

_ Think of Me, _

_ Your Secret _


	3. Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'm starting to get into a rhythm with posting. I'm hoping to have an update out at least once a week (hopefully I can get most of the future chapters done on weekends and then work on them throughout the week). I hope you guys like it!

“I thought you said you were going to focus on yourself for a while.”

“I  _ am _ … But they could also be cute, you know? Now stop moving before I stab you with the pin.”

All Asmo had to do was make a few adjustments so his latest assignment actually fit Solomon before making his judgement. If it didn’t fit him just the way he wanted it to, it would look bad if not every little last detail was perfectly in place. Not to mention, the colors looked good on Solomon. Long black jacket that flared down to his knees, with dark blue snakes hiding in the fabric. They were almost invisible until the light hit the sequence just right. Underneath was a white a light grey shirt with golden trim on the collar which bled into dark grey pants. They flared out at the bottom just a bit and also had the same gold trim. Dark and mysterious, a perfect contrast to his person. The blue of the snakes almost matched the specks of blue in his grey eyes.

“I mean note writing is a little ‘high school’ I guess, but it never happened to me before… So I think it’s kind of cute. Plus it’s very well done, much better than anything any of our old classmates could have pulled off,” Asmo sighed, adjusting the cuff of the slacks. He’d gotten a few more letters since the first, some had even included little gifts. Each one had made him bubble up with joy. 

“Have you told any of your brothers?” Solomon asked, looking down at Asmodeus.

“ _ Hell no _ . While I’d love to go on and on about it, the others wouldn’t let it  _ go _ , and you know how protective Luci can be.”

Lucifer had been thrown into a parental role earlier than he should have been (honestly he shouldn’t have had to do it at all), but he’d done a fairly good job from what Asmo remembered. Of course they’d had guardians, but Lucifer always tried his best for all of them. He’s also been fairly protective over all of them. Asmo could still remember how he had reacted with his first break up,or the time a group of guys had ganged up on Mammon and Levi after school. Neither situation had ended well for their offenders. Nothing really changed much. The only difference now was that Lucifer was a big, fancy, successful lawyer. While Lucifer was smart in his own regards, it also helped that he’d just so happened to make friends with Diavolo during his studies, a man born into money and power. Diavolo  _ adored  _ Asmo’s dear older brother, and wanted to see him succeed in life. Despite Lucifer’s many protests, Diavolo had poured a lot into Lucifer’s law firm and helped him make Morning-Star&Dev ílle the successful and glorious firm it was today. Long story short, people used to be scared of messing with any of the younger Morning-Stars, now they were absolutely  _ terrified _ . 

Asmo stood and walked around Solomon once more. Everything seemed to be marked properly for him to sew later so he brought Solomon over to the mirror. He let out a low whistle. 

“I like this one,” Solomon grinned, gently tugging on the long dark jacket, “And Mammon really wouldn’t model this for you?”

“Not without pay no. He doesn’t do ‘free gigs’.”

More like he didn’t have time for them. Mammon was broke every other week. Asmo didn’t really know how he could do it, so he spent most of his time in the studio to make as much as he could. Asmo had tagged along with him to the studio once, mainly so he could talk to some of the designers. However, he would say that Mammon made a pretty good model. 

Even so, he liked having Solomon as his model, and he wouldn’t have to redo measurements often. Plus, Solomon looked good in everything he made. It could be because he had a tiny thing for him, or that he was his type, but whatever. He had an attractive model who he also got along with, and that was important.

“You knoooow, you could always come along with me. I’d make you my own personal model, then I could make you clothes all the time,” Asmo hummed, peaking over his shoulder, “Mr. Author and or professor Solomon would always have a snazzy new suit for every day of the week, or outfit of your choosing. I’m not picky with what I make.” 

He caught Solomon’s smirk in the mirror, damn he was  _ attractive _ . He always got this little twinkle in his eyes whenever he smirked, it was so mischievous. When had he started doing that? When had that shy little boy on the playground become this man before him?

“Perhaps. I’ll think about it.”

Asmodeus hummed for a moment before pulling his bangs back slightly, there it was. That was a nice look. “Oooh you should pull your hair back when you model for my class! Or do it more anyways, that way people can see more of that handsome face of yours!” he said.  _ Or so he could see more of that handsome face of his. _

Solomon chuckled and shook his head, pulling Asmodeus’ hand away and brushed his bangs back into place. “I don’t know, I kind of like my hair the way it is. I’ll leave the fancy stuff to you Asmodeus.”

“Pulling your hair back is  _ hardly  _ considered fancy, dear Solomon.”

Something was still missing… Asmo circled Solomon a few more times.  _ What was it? _ He stared at the breast pocket for just a moment before snapping, “Got it!” Going over to his dresser, he plucked one of the fake flowers from its place. The yellow perennial added a nice splash of color to the outfit and stood out nicely against the dark fabric and matched the golden trim, even if it hadn’t been one of the fully bloomed ones. “Now it’s  _ perfect _ .”

Solomon adjusted the collar just a bit, eyes fixed on the flower in his pocket. One arm was crossed over his abdomen and the other near his chin, one finger underneath his lip. Slowly he nodded. 

_ Why did he have to be so wonderful _ ?

Asmo pushed those thoughts away. 

“If you think it looks good, I trust you,” Solomon smiled, “After all, you’re the designer here, not me.”

“Good! Now take it off so I can adjust it. I still need to try a few ideas for your face until I’m done with you.”

******

A familiar meow greeted Asmo as he entered the cafe. One of the many residents greeted him happily looking for chin scratches and other affections from him. Few people were here at this hour, and honestly that was for the best. After all, he didn’t want people to overhear his little gossip sessions with Satan. Visiting his brother on break was always fun. He’d get to hear countless stories of odd customers that came in that day and Asmo could tell him about some of the latest gossip on his campus.

“All I’m saying is this, the next kid that pulls one of my cats’ tails is gettin drop kicked out the door,” Satan growled, “I don’t  _ care  _ if he’s six Susan, do your fuckin job as a mom and teach him to  _ not hurt my cats. _ ”

Asmo nodded along with his brother’s words as one of the tabby’s pressed her head into his palm. “ _ Children. _ Surely we weren’t bad when we were that age.”

“Lucifer might beg to differ.”

Asmo flicked the paper wrapper from his straw at him, and Satan snorted, “Well  _ he would _ .”

“Hush. Luci basically raised us, you know he loves us.”

Satan mumbled a bit and rolled his eyes. 

“Anyways,” Asmo continued, “Wanna know  _ my  _ latest thing while there’s no eavesdropping brothers?”

Satan leaned over the table to meet Asmo half way, a smirk on his face. “Any dirt on dear older brother? Or did something happen on campus? Some stupid freshie do dumb shit at the latest frat party?”

That was when Asmodeus hesitated for a moment. Should he tell him? He could always pull something else out to tell him. It wouldn’t be  _ that  _ hard. After all, he knew all of the latest news on campus, he could think of something he hadn’t told Satan yet. No. He could trust Satan. Satan could keep a secret. Even if he couldn’t, Lucifer would be the  _ last  _ person he’d tell. Lucifer was the one he was worried about finding out. He would worry. He’d think the worst.

Not that he blamed him. Lucifer had heard more than enough horror stories from clients to last him five lifetimes over. He knew what the world could be like. He had to face it almost every day he walked in. Asmo just preferred to ignore those parts. Worrying too much could cause wrinkles, and that was one thing that Asmo never wanted to happen to him. Besides, they’d all been fine up to this point and they would continue to be fine.

The letters spread across the table and Satan raised a brow. Asmo slowly opened them and even placed some of the tinier gifts on the table. “ _ Read them _ ,” he said, “Satan they’re so  _ wonderful _ . So beautifully written! I’ve been finding them in my things. My bag, my laptop, my textbooks, my desks, my makeup bag- Oh it’s so romantic and  _ secretive _ .”

Satan opened one of the letters slowly, eyes scanning over the words slowly, processing what this was. Asmo held his breath, eyes trained on his brother.  _ Oh  _ he could  _ wait  _ to hear Satan’s thoughts. Of course talking to Solomon had been fun, but Solomon was more of a listener. Solomon was a good listener. Those beautiful grey eyes trained on him, nodding to let him know he was listening. He also never interrupted, which was nice. He always listened to him, no matter what.  _ And those eyes… _

“Well, their penmanship is certainly impressive.”

“ _ Satan.  _ Is that  _ really  _ all you have to say?” Asmo couldn’t hide the exasperation in his voice, “This is  _ romance _ . You know, like you have in some of the books you have in that  _ mountain  _ of a bookshelf? And all you can comment on is the  _ handwriting? _ ”

“Well it is rather exceptional,” Satan shrugged, “And you don’t have a clue who it could be?”

Asmo had  _ fantasies  _ about who it could be, but as far as clues went-

“Nope! Not in the slightest. All I know is that they say such wonderful things, and they sound like they absolutely adore me!” he sighed, “They even used my favorite color for the letter. I can only imagine how sweet they are, or how wonderful they might be.”

“Or they could be a complete psychopath.”   
  


“ _ Shut up _ . This is my fantasy and you’re about to be uninvited.”

Concern crossed Satan’s face, and Asmo could already feel himself starting to suppress a groan. “I’m just being rational. It could happen. There’s plenty of weirdos out there who’d do anything to get what they want you know.”

Of course Asmo knew, but that wasn’t the case here. It  _ couldn’t  _ be the case here. 

Right?

“You’re starting to sound like Lucifer.”

“Please, don’t insult me like that,” Satan let out a sigh and looked out the window of the cafe, “I don’t want that to be the case. You’ve only been getting these on campus?”

“ _ Yes.  _ Unfortunately they don’t follow me wherever I go. It’s not like one’s going to magically pop up while we’re sitting here in the cafe. Besides, I’m more than capable of taking care of myself if something does happen. They probably just look at my accounts. It’s not hard to find my favorite color.”

He wasn’t helpless, and he _ certainly  _ wasn’t stupid. He was allowed to enjoy this.

“Perhaps,” Satan couldn’t shake  _ all  _ of the concern in his eyes, but he could get rid of most of it, “Although, I may have to have a talk with them if they ever choose to reveal themselves. While they’re writing is  _ good _ , I’d love to help them work on their descriptions.”

“Satan.”

“It’s cute in a sense, but there are certainly more romantic things that could be said if that’s what they were going for.”

“ _ Satan _ .”

“For example, they could have put more of an emphasis on your eyes-” 

Asmo groaned and slumped over onto the table, “Satan I don’t want you giving my precious Secret an entire lesson. Knowing my luck you’ll scare them away.”

He heard Satan chuckle and felt him ruffle his hair. Asmo’s eyes peaked up from his arms so he could glare at his brother, but only for a moment. “You know the rule for partners. They get brought in, we get to embarrass whoever brought them in.”

Asmo grumbled out a quiet “yeah yeah I  _ know _ ” before sitting back up straight. The future for him and Secret would be unforgiving when it came to his brothers, but he didn’t have to cross that bridge yet. Maybe he’d be able to find a way to save both of them from their cruel fate, or more accurately, maybe Asmo could save himself from the cruel fate of being embarrassed in front of his precious Secret.

“You’re all so cruel. You know that right?” Asmo huffed, “Here I am, searching for the love of my life, and all any of you can think of doing is whipping out old stories or teasing me until I turn red. The nerve of you.”

“Everyone gets the same treatment Asmo.”

“I know, but still,” Asmo smoothed his hair back over and let out a sigh, “Couldn’t you let it slide just this once?  _ Please _ ? They could be the one.” He put on his best puppy dog eyes and batted his lashes for extra measure. For a few moments. One. Then two. Then-

Satan burst out into laughter, “Nah. Nope. Sorry Asmo. If the rest of us have to suffer so do you. Not to mention all of your partners, in your own words, ‘could have been the one’. I’m starting to think that you say that more than you realize.”

That’s because each time he honestly believed it. 

  
  


“Oh  _ whatever.  _ In any case, this stays between us okay? No one else knows. _ Especially  _ not Lucifer.” Asmo’s voice was stern. Satan had to know he wasn’t joking around now. He knew what mode Lucifer would jump into if he figured out what was happening, and Asmo couldn’t have that. He didn’t want Secret to be scared off by him. If Secret truly did care about him like they wrote about, Asmo wanted them to stick around for a while….

Satan nodded, “Asmo, you know me. Anything spoken between our exclusive circle stays between us. Lucifer isn’t going to find out. Not until you want him to anyways.” He refolded the letters and pushed them back towards his brother. It was their little secret. 

Asmo smiled and took the letters back carefully. “I have a new one to read tonight. I can tell you what it says tomorrow.”

“Oh? You didn’t bring it with you?”

“I’d like the first read through of a first letter to be reserved for my eyes only.”

It made the moment more intimate that way. It was special. Every new letter he opened felt like a warm embrace from his Secret. He bet their embrace felt even more wonderful than he imagined.

“Now, care to tell me about some more of your horror stories?”

*******

_ To the keeper of my heart, _

_ Where do I even begin when it comes to you? _

_ Some days I fear that my words may fall short _

_ Or that there will be no words left to describe you properly. _

_ What will I do then? _

_ Perhaps I would have to come out from hiding _

_ Hold you close _

_ Never let you go _

_ And recite all of the wonderful mysteries about you. _

_ I love when you get excited about your passions. _

_ Your eyes sparkle and outshine all of the stars in the sky _

_ Your lips curl up in the most perfect of arcs _

_ You voice lilts and picks up ever so slightly. _

_ I’ve never known a more passionate person than you. _

_ Never let anyone take away the life in your eyes. _

_ Think of Me, _

_ Your Secret _

  
  


Asmo had read the letter three times over. Each time his eyes scanned over the words his heart skipped a beat. Of course he wasn’t new to compliments, he’d received so many over the years. People stared at him, People  _ wanted  _ him. Sure maybe it was a little narcissistic, but why deny it if he knew it to be true? Despite all of that, people rarely went into detail about what they loved about him. He’d had partners brag about how hot or cute he was, but many had also made him feel self conscious. He still remembered the disappointment that flickered behind an old boyfriend’s eyes the one time he had decided to “dress down” one day when he stayed over. The dismissive tone in his voice… Even though Asmo thought he’d looked cute…

Things like that stick with you.

Would Secret still love him if he dropped below the bar one day?

He didn’t want to find out…

Asmo placed the letter on his nightstand, and curled up under his covers. He certainly did think of Secret every night. He tried to create a picture of them in his head. He imagined their voice, how wonderful their embrace would feel, how absolutely perfect they would be. They truly adored him. How could Asmo not think of them? As he drifted off, his mind once again wadered to Solomon. Even if it wasn’t possible, thinking about it couldn’t hurt. It wasn’t like he was going to actually start falling for his childhood crush again. He was still allowed to think he was cute. Plenty of people were cute, that didn’t mean that he’d fall for every cute person he saw. 

Once again, Asmo found himself dreaming of his best friend and his beautiful eyes.

  
  



	4. Sweet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First off, thank you all for everything so far! All of the kind words and support have been wonderful so thank you! It makes me happy knowing that people are enjoying this fic! I think I'm also going to try to update this on Fridays and shoot to have a new chapter up every Friday until it's completed. I may also upload one shots in between. I have two requests as of now. i can also be found on tumblr under @ruesinger or @queandrue. (I'm considering making another blog for these fics, but haven't posted them on queandrue (although I did post the links there)). Once again, thank you all so much for everything so far. I hope you enjoy!

Asmo pulled the covers over his head. His weekend beauty alarm hadn’t gone off yet, why was he awake? He’d just been having another wonderful dream too. It took a while for it to register, but then he heard the  _ rustling _ . Asmo peeled open one of his eyes. Then he blinked once. Twice. No. He wouldn’t  _ dare _ .

Mammon was crouched next to his dresser, going through Asmo’s things.

“What the  _ hell  _ do you think you’re doing?” Asmo growled, tossing the blankets back. Mammon jumped and turned towards his younger brother. He painted a smile across his face and started to pat Asmo’s head. 

“I just wanted to wake up my little brother, is that so bad?” he asked. Asmo swatted his hand away and glared at him. Never mind that Asmo’s hair was still messy, he didn’t need Mammon messing it up more. Plus he was already angry. He’d caught Mammon going through his things! What a great way to start his morning. Then he saw what Mammon had in his hands. 

“What are you doing with that?”

“Oh? This?” Mammon held up the letter. Asmo’s letter. “You don’t see fancy little things like this around. ‘Specially when it ain’t even ‘ya birthday. And now you’re gettin all defensive-”

“Because I woke up to you going through my stuff  _ dipshit. _ ”

Mammon smirked and looked closer at the letter, “So you don’t care if I read it?”

“Put it down!” Asmo screeched, lunging from the mattress to his older brother. Mammon cackled and held the letter above his head, while pushing Asmo back with his other arm. He let out a whistle, eyes quickly scanning over the page. 

“ _ Woooow _ . You gotta lil’ Romeo on your hands right here!” Mammon mused. Asmo could feel his face start to heat up, especially when Mammon started to clear his throat, “Your eyes sparkle and outshine all of the stars in the sky, your lips curl up in the most perfect of arcs-”

“Quit it Mammon! Give it back!” Asmo felt like he was in middle school again. Why couldn’t Mammon just grow up? Seriously! Asmo wasn’t sure whether he was going to die of embarrassment or spend the rest of his life in jail for reenacting the story of Cain and Abel. 

Mammon lowered the letter just a bit, “This fella really likes you a lot, big brother Mammon might just have to get the bat out.”

Asmo growled and lunged towards the letter, scratching Mammon in the process.

“Ow! Hey! Keep those claws away from me!”

“Give me my letter back and I won’t tear your eyes out!” He was holding back only slightly. The last thing he wanted to do was tear one of his precious letters. Each one was special, he could let harm come to a single one of them.

Asmo followed Mammon’s gaze as he looked over to the corner of the room. Asmo didn’t realize he could have become even more livid. His things were upturned, all of his letters and little gifts sprawled out on the floor. “They the person that gave you all of those as well? What? Can’t you bring ‘em home to meet your family? Or are they talkin you outta lettin us meet ‘em?”

Oh  _ now  _ Mammon wanted to play the part of protective big brother. First, he came in and started rooting through his room. Second, he rudely woke Asmo up. Thirdly, he started reading Asmo’s private letters. And  **_now_ ** he wants to integrate him? No. Absolutely not. No way.

“For your information, I don’t know who they are, hence them signing off the letters with  _ Secret _ ,” Asmo huffed, snatching his letter back, trying to crinkle it as little as possible. “And if you even think about telling anyone,  _ especially  _ if you let it slip to our dearest older brother, I swear Mammon-”

“Okay. Okay! Cool it, why would I ever tell anyone?”

Asmo narrowed his eyes.

“Alright, I wouldn’t tell anyone on  _ purpose _ .”

That was reassuring. Asmo smoothed out the letter and carefully inspected it for any tears or serious crinkles before going to reorganize his gifts. Small candies, a small bunny keychain, cute things that Asmo would enjoy. Mammon watched him for a moment, shifting from side to side. Asmo was happy he didn’t try to take a step closer. He wanted a little bit of space. 

“Hey,” Mammon finally said as Asmo went to rehide his things in a drawer close to his bed, “I’m sorry alright? I just want to know what’s goin on with you guys. You aren’t always open with things ya know.”

“Neither are you.”

“Touche.” 

Mammon ran his fingers through his hair and sighed, “Ya don’t have to worry about me goin and telling Lucifer a’ight? Promise.”

Asmo raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, “And going through my room?”

“Can’t promise you that I won’t do that.”

Asmo sighed. Well, at least he knew he wouldn’t go telling Lucifer… Not that he would in the first place. But if he did, he could always use Mammon going through their rooms as a deflection. Although he wasn’t sure how well that would hold up, or how long it would hold Lucifer’s focus (if it even did in the first place).

“I only do it ‘cus, I wanna know what’s going on in your life.” Mammon mumbled, “And if this asshole hurts ya, I wanna know! ‘Cus no one hurts any of the Great Mammon’s little brothers!”

Asmo sighed, “Well there are better ways to figure out what I’m up to. Like asking me.” Although, the second half did earn a little snort out of him. Even if Mammon could be a complete asshole sometimes, he did still look out for them. Just like how he’d confront bullies for them as kids.

“Yeah, yeah. Just don’t scare them off before I get to know them.”

Honestly. Lucifer’s energy had been enough to make most of his past lovers almost behave (at least when he was around). He’d always sat them down, made sure they understood how his little brothers should be treated even if it made Asmo want to die of embarrassment. If Mammon had been in the same position, all of those partners would have left. Whether it would have been out of fear or from no longer wanting any part in Asmo’s family he would never know nor did he wish to find out. 

Asmo made his way over to his dresser and plopped down. Well, he was awake now. No point in trying to go back to bed, so he might as well get ready. “If you don’t mind brother dearest, I think I’m going to get ready.”

“You goin somewhere?”

“Studying with Solomon if you must know.”

“Ahhh.  _ Studying  _ gotchu.”

“Solomon’s not that type of guy, now shut up and get out.”

“Love you too my dear little brother.”

Maybe he shouldn’t let Mammon go with his secret. It really did seem like a bad idea, his brother walking around with his secret. Sure he had trusted Satan with his secret, but Mammon? Well Mammon had found out on his own, unfortunately. Even if it left a bad taste in his mouth, he had other things to worry about now. He had places to be. 

*******

Solomon’s apartment was nice, and he didn’t have to worry about his brothers interfering or being distracting. Not to mention, the living room was also filled with natural light, which not only made it bright but warm as well. 

If any situation outside of parties showed how much Asmo struggled with the concept of personal space, it was having his work sessions with Solomon. He never had a problem when it was an assignment that had to do with his designs, but whenever it was something that strayed from his beloved focus his head was on Solomon’s shoulder and he was whining. 

“Solomon,” he huffed, putting his laptop down and slumping against him, “This assignment doesn’t even make sense. How am I supposed to write a new groundbreaking paper when everything that could of been said has already been said? Solomon this class doesn’t make any sense.”

He could feel Solomon’s chuckle rumble through his chest. It was a really was a nice sound, like distant thunder. “You didn’t have to take this class with me you know. It’s part of my degree, it’s just credits for you,” he said, placing his things to the side and placing Asmo’s laptop on his lap..

“Demonology sounded really interesting, and you made it sound fun,” he pouted, “Besides, the class is interesting enough. I just hate these stupid papers.”

“I’ll read over it for you, don’t worry.” He always did.

Asmo watched over his shoulder as he made little notes in the margin. He was comfortable next to Solomon. Honestly he hoped that Secret would be okay with him doing things like this. Or that he could do things like this with Secret…. Or that Solomon was Secret.

No.

Nope.

He shouldn’t go there. Solomon was his best friend. He wasn’t going to think of him like that, even if he was cute, and smart, and funny, and attractive…

Even if the best relationships sprouted between the closest of friends….

He really needed to change the subject.

“Is it too late to drop out? I could become a stripper.”

Solomon turned to look at him, eyebrow quirked. He let out a soft hum, letting his eyes look over Asmo for just a second. Then he nodded, “You’d make a cute stripper.”

Asmo’s face turned red, “No! You’re not supposed to say that! You’re my best friend. You’re supposed to either talk about how I should stay in school  _ or  _ that you’d drop out too and join me!”  _ Not compliment how cute he was _ . While Asmo enjoyed it, it wasn’t what Solomon was supposed to say. Maybe he was joking, but Asmo would think of it as a genuine compliment. “I already know I’d make a cute stripper,” he mumbled.

Like Solomon thought of his body like that. Even if it was true. 

“Ah. You’re right. I’m sorry. You’d make a horrible stripper. Stay in school. Don’t drink. Don’t do drugs. More words of wisdom and whatnot.”

“ _ Solomon _ .”

Of course he could have pulled his face away. He could move to the opposite side of their workspace and stay there. But he didn’t. Asmo stayed curled up where he was,face partially buried in the fabric of Solomon’s shirt, his cologne flooding his senses. Solomon’s smug smirk was still plastered to his face, but his eyes were trained on Asmo’s paper. He had no right to be so smug, especially when Asmo’s entire body was heating up and he was starting to pout. 

Sometimes Solomon could drive him more crazy than his brothers could ever dream of doing. But it was a different type of crazy. A type of crazy that made him want to tackle Solomon to the couch and-

“Pardon me.”

Asmo lifted his head slightly, to turn and look at Simeon. He was holding a tray of cupcakes in his hands. They were pretty. Icing swirled to near perfection in different pastels and covered in shiny white chocolate pearls. Simeon didn’t often intrude on their study sessions. Sometimes he would join for a bit, but he didn’t want to be a distraction. Well, that and he had to look after Luke. 

Speaking of Luke, the kid was not too far behind Simeon, looking anywhere but at Asmo and Solomon.

“I do hope I’m not interrupting, but Luke thought you both might like a cupcake. He made them himself.”

“I had some extra,” Luke clarified, “They have a lemon cream filling.”

Simeon set the tray on the table and Solomon nodded, “Thank you Luke, I’m sure that they’ll be wonderful.” Asmo nodded in agreement. That was another perk of working at Solomon’s. There was always some sort of wonderful treat waiting. The kitchen always smelled like a bakery. 

He watched as Solomon reached over him and towards the tray for one of the treats, quickly followed by Asmo’s own hand. They lightly brushed together for just a moment, but Asmo was quick to take one of the cupcakes and yank his hand back. 

Simeon’s eyes were fixed to them the entire time. 

“Solomon.”

“Hm?”

“I’m going to take Luke to the library. We may be out for a while. Remember to lock the door if you go out?” His eyes flickered between the two of them for a moment. Before settling on Solomon. The look he gave Solomon was unreadable to Asmo.

“Alright, have fun,” Solomon smiled, turning back to Asmo’s paper. 

Simeon smiled and nodded, “We will, it was good seeing you Asmo." With that, Simeon turned, graceful as ever, and left with Luke.

Asmo’s nose crinkled, “What was that about?”

“Luke made cupcakes.”

“No no. That look Simeon gave you.” 

Solomon leaned back and licked a bit of the icing from the cupcake, “Oh. I don’t know. Maybe I forgot to lock the door last time.” He wasn’t looking at Asmodeus, gaze transfixed on the wall. Weird. “Anyways, I think your paper looks fine. There’s just a few things I’d change, but I think it hit everything it needed to.”

Asmo smiled, a little more relaxed now about the assignment. He trusted Solomon’s judgement. Finally Asmo took a bit of his own cupcake. The cake was soft and moist, and Luke’s homemade icing and filling were both so fluffy and light. He couldn’t help but let out a soft moan. It was just too good. On more than one occasion he considered asking if he could move in, just so he could get little treats like this on a daily basis.

The sound of Solomon clearing his throat snapped Asmo out of his sweet-induced trance and over to his friend. Solomon had moved on and was now staring intently down at one of his textbooks. However, he didn’t miss the slight coloration in Solomon’s face. 

“What?”

“Nothing. Just… Something in the book.”

“Ooh can I see?” Asmo scooted closer and tried to peak over into the pages below. However, Solomon quickly snapped the book shut and held it out of Asmodeus’ grasp. 

“Nope. It’s gone now.”

“Aw come on, please Solomon? If it made you all blushy it must be good!” Asmo asked. He wasn’t about to let himself be left out from whatever spicy romance lied within the book Solomon was trying to keep from him. Solomon stood little chance against his friend, who was practically- no, not  _ practically _ \- who  _ was  _ climbing on top of him.

“Asmodeus!” Solomon’s voice cracked as he fell over, still trying to hold the book over his head as Asmodeus fell on top of him laughing. One arm wrapped around Asmo’s waist in an attempt to keep him away from the book. 

“Come  _ on  _ Solomon!” he giggled, reaching for the book, only for it to be flung to the other side of the room and hitting the wall with a soft thud. Asmo huffed and went to stand to scurry after the book, only to be stopped by Solomon sitting up, both arms around him. “Oh you are  _ such  _ a child.”

“I’m the child?” Solomon snorted, “You’re the one who can’t let it go.”

“I call it persistence and knowing what I want. Now let me see!”

Asmo felt himself try to wiggle out of Solomon’s arms, only to be met with more resistance from him. “Well I don’t even remember what page it was on so you’re just gonna have to forget about it,” he huffed, throwing his body weight against Asmo and sending him to the floor and making him yelp ever so slightly.

“Owwwww, Solomon! That hurt.”

“Ah, sorry.” Solomon sat up but only slightly, he looked worried, hand moving to the side of Asmodeus’ head. “Are you okay?” 

Asmo’s breath caught in his throat. The sun from the window outlined him in such a heavenly way. Each shadow on his face traced his strong jaw and cheekbones.He felt his hand stroke through his hair, feeling along his skull. 

Asmo never let anyone touch his hair after he styled it. 

“Any pain? Are you dizzy?”

“Ah… No…”

Well, not dizzy in the way Solomon was thinking. What could he say? What could he do? Well he could tell Solomon to get off, if he ever found his voice….

Then Solomon’s thumb swiped across his lips, and brought it up to his own mouth.

Icing.

“You could have just told me,” Asmo huffed, propping himself up on his elbows

Solomon was back on his haunches now, wrapped up in the icing, “What? Luke makes good icing.” Asmodeus rolled his eyes and shoved at Solomon’s chest. 

“You’re insufferable.”

“Not insufferable enough for you to stop spending time with me,” Solomon chuckled. He got off of Asmodeus and helped him sit up, hands lingering just a little longer than necessary. Then the silence took over again.

It wasn’t the same silence as before though. This time it was a bit more awkward, filled with shifting bodies and uncertainty over what to say next. Asmo’s attention went to his phone. After all, social media made for a wonderful distraction. Flipping to the camera, Asmo decided to look over his appearance. He definitely needed to fix his hair. The lighting was amazing here.

“Wanna take a picture?” 

Solomon perked up at the sudden break in the silence and looked at the two of them in the camera. “Do you wanna take a picture?” he asked, chest nudging against Asmo’s back. Asmo ignored the fluttering occurring deep within him, even if it was a nice feeling. He would be a liar if he said he didn’t lean back into his touch. 

“Just pick up one of the cupcakes and hold it up,” Asmo instructed, “It’ll be cute, trust me. Plus showing off my future number one model could be a good marketing strategy.”

Asmo felt Solomon’s chin rest on his shoulder as he tried to find the right angle to take the photo at. “You know, you keep posting pictures like this and people might start thinking I’m a little more than a ‘best friend’ or ‘model’,” he said, resisting the temptation to start digging into the second cupcake. 

“And who cares what they think?”

Even as Asmo said it, his stomach sunk a little. Well, maybe Solomon cared if people thought they were together. They were just friends. That was it. Maybe there was someone Solomon liked, someone he wanted to impress, and Asmo was ruining his chances by taking photos like these. Solomon had gone along with (most of) his ideas for most of the time they’d been together. Maybe he was just too nice to say no to Asmo’s little ideas. Maybe-

“Hey.” Solomon was looking at him, “Are you going to take it?” His face was a lot closer than Asmo realized. 

“Oh! Yeah, yes, sorry. Just trying to find the right angle… There!” 

_ Click.  _

They both stared at the photo for a moment, Asmo more than aware of how Solomon hadn’t left his position. “I like it. You were right. It’s nice.”

_ Solomon had the nicest, sweetest smile he’d ever seen on another person. _

“Are you going to post it?”

_ How did he always look so relaxed _ ?

But before Asmo could reply, a notification popped up on his phone. Then another and another and another and-

He was used to his phone blowing up, but he hadn’t even posted the picture yet. Looking deeper into the source, he found that they were all from his brothers, mainly Mammon and Levi. Slowly Asmo clicked on the notification.

**_L3vi_ ** _ : You have a girlfriend? _

**_Mammoney_ ** _ : Asmo I’m sorry _

**_L3vi_ ** _ : Or boyfriend? _

**_Mammoney_ ** _ : Please don’t kill me _

**_L3vi_ ** _ : Why did you tell Mammon and not me? That’s not fair! _

**_Mammoney_ ** _ : I didn’t mean to- _

**_L3vi_ ** _ : I read a manga with a plot like this once- _

**_Mammoney_ ** _ : It just kinda came out _

**_L3vi_ ** _ : I know the perfect way to figure out who this is! _

**_Mammoney_ ** _ : Asmo? _

He wanted to scream. He put his phone down, ignoring the rest of the notifications. Yeah. He should have killed Mammon earlier. It hadn’t even been a full twenty-four hours. The only thing he could be thankful for was that he didn’t tell Lucifer… As far as he knew. 

Asmo was going to  _ kill  _ him.

“I thought your brothers didn’t know.”

Solomon’s voice brought Asmodeus back to reality, it didn’t stop his fuming, but it did bring him back to where he was. “ _They_ _didn’t_ ,” he hissed, “Well, I mean I told Satan, but he was going to be the only one to know. Mammon certainly wasn’t supposed to know and-” Asmo’s words dissolved into a groan. His study session with Solomon had been going so well too. They’d been productive... for the most part.

He flopped onto Solomon’s shoulder and let out a whine. “Just let me move in with you please!” he whimpered, “I promise I won’t bother Simeon and Luke too much and you  _ know  _ I’m neat and clean. My brothers are going to drive me to an early grave, or worse, give me  _ wrinkles _ .” 

Solomon snorted which only made Asmodeus’ pout deepen. “Rude. This is a very serious matter.”

“Don’t you think you’re being a tad overdramatic?” 

All Asmo did was cross his arms in response. Solomon sighed and looked down at Asmodeus. “Well… I can’t say that there’s space for you to move in-”

“Not even the couch? Or sharing a bed?”

Solomon held up his finger, “But, I can walk you home. If you’d like. I can be your human shield and protect you from your brothers.”

Asmo thought for a moment, arms uncrossing and fingers playing with the hem of Solomon’s sleeve. Having Solomon walk him home could be the next best thing (aside from just spending the night), and he would be able to distract himself from the dread and embarrassment that awaited him back home. Walking back home with Solomon was always nice regardless. Who didn’t like to spend more time with their best friend?


	5. Getting Creative

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so it just occured to me this week that people actually read and enjoy this fic? I saw someone link to it on Tumblr and it just hit me. It made me so happy. I'm so happy that all of you are enjoying this so far and that I can make you happy. I really appreciate it. Thank you all so much, I hope you enjoy. Everything is appreciated 💕  
> Reminder that you can find me on tumblr under @RueSinger  
> Also updates occur on Fridays (US eastern time)!

The walk back was much better with Solomon at his side. Even if he was nervous and a little frustrated at the thought of his Secret not staying in the circle he wanted them to, Solomon talking about his latest research project was nice. His eyes lit up in the cutest of ways when he was talking about something he was passionate about. So what Asmo was indulging his crush a little bit? Who wouldn’t think Solomon was attractive, a bit odd at times, but still attractive. And he could pull off the mystery man act really well, even if he was a huge nerd deep down. 

However, the closer they got to his humble abode, the more apprehension built within Asmo. “Do you think it’s too late to run away from home now?” he asked, turning to look at Solomon. He was mostly kidding.

Solomon seemed to think it over for a minute as they stopped in front of the Morningstar residence. “I mean, you could. But you don’t have any of your things, so there’s that, along with the fact that you wouldn’t get very far,” he said.

“Because my car’s in the shop?”

“I was going to say because of Lucifer, but that too.” 

Asmo couldn’t help but snort. Solomon did have a point. If any one of them went missing under any circumstance, Lucifer would raise hell. He knew him, and he knew he’d do anything, spend any amount of money to get them back. In other words running away to avoid embarrassment was definitely out of the picture.

With a little apprehensiveness Asmo opened the door, preparing himself for the worst. However, he was met with a strange silence, one he couldn’t quite find comfort in. As he listened closer, he could hear voices coming from the living room.

“You  _ had  _ to just go and blabber to him.”

“You were the one that blabbered to me first! Why would you get told and not me?”

“Because Mammon wasn’t supposed to know,” Asmo huffed, arms crossed. Said brother jumped to face Asmo. Asmo’s arms were crossed, and a frown etched itself into his smooth skin. Solomon poked his head from around the corner and peered over Asmo’s shoulder. Unlike Asmo, he seemed almost indifferent to the scene before him. Eyes moving from Levi, to Mammon, back to Asmo. It took him a few moments before he noticed two more figures sitting on one of the chairs in one of the corners of the room. 

Levi held up his phone and frowned, “Asmo you never answered my texts! Why did Mammon get to know about this and not me?” 

“Because Mammon went snooping through my room, I wasn’t going to tell any of you,” Asmo frowned, brows furrowing and arms tightening around himself. He couldn’t believe his brothers. Why did they always want to be in his business when he didn’t want them to be?

He felt Solomon move behind him to his other side as he leaned against the open doorway. “Well you did tell Satan and me.”

“You don’t count.”

Mammon narrowed his eyes at Asmo and put his hands on his hips. “Oh. So  _ Satan  _ can know but the rest of us can’t? What? You think we’re all gonna go ‘n snitch to Lucifer?” he huffed. Asmo really couldn't believe that Mammon was trying to call him out right now. Mammon, who already told one of their other brothers about his precious Secret in less than twenty-four hours. And he was wondering why he only wanted to tell Satan.

“Well Satan wasn’t the one that went and told Levi was he?”

“Or us.”

Asmo whipped his head to the corner of the room where the twins sat nestles comfortably on the couch. Beel and Belphie were both focused on a pink sheet of paper in Belphie’s hands and didn’t bother to look up. “Sorry, we heard them going back and forth and got curious when we saw this in the mailbox,” Belphie said, a smirk starting to appear on his face, “Whoever they are, you really have their attention. Wonder how often you’re on their mind.”   
  


“Give me that before one of you gets grease on it!” Asmo’s face was a bright pink, as he went to grab the letter only to have it snatched away by another hand. “Levi!”

“I want to be able to read some of their writing too! Afterall, I’m an expert in this field!”

“Expert?” Asmo highly doubted that.

Levi ignored him and started scanning over the words on the paper. “Well duh. Do you realize how much media utilizes the Secret Admirer trope? It’s practically everywhere, especially in fanfiction,” he rambled, “And- oh they like your laugh.”

“Oi read faster!”

“My letters aren’t for you to read!” Why was it that they didn’t want to hear about his partners any other time, but now they wanted to read all about his personal life? He didn’t have much time to think as a hand slipped onto his shoulder.

“I thought I was the only one in the family that knew.” He hadn’t even noticed Satan slip into the room. He was still in his work uniform and the scent of coffee followed him. “I was wondering what had you so worked up in here,” he said, “So, did Lucifer find out?”

“He hasn’t been home yet,” Beel said, munching down on a bag of chips, “I think he said something about taking Cerberus out on a walk with Diavolo and Barbatos. Is Lucifer not supposed to know?”

Asmo let out a sigh of relief. Good. He didn’t have to cross that bridge yet. He wouldn’t have to try and justify himself to Lucifer. “No. Not yet,” he said, “Now if you would  _ please _ -”

“Levi! Didn’t you have new news to tell me about that show we were watching?” Solomon had managed to weasel his way between Levi and Mammon. Asmo knew that Solomon shared interests with some of his brothers, but this was hardly the time to bring that up! Whose side was he on? “I think it was something about-”

“A stakeout! Yes!” Levi grinned, completely shifting his focus, “You know how everything was left on a cliffhanger? Well it was a little off, but they were all in Henry’s car with some you pretty advanced tech! And you really have to catch up because I don’t want to spoil who they caught. But you absolutely won’t believe who it was! It was almost too obvious, so no one suspected them.” 

Then something seemed to click within Levi and a giant grin spread across his face, “Oh! That’s what we should do!” Levi quickly turned to Asmo and gripped his shoulders, “We need a stakeout.”

“Come again?”

“A stakeout,” he repeated, “Just like in issue number twelve of My Secret Crush Affair. While Volume seven isn’t canon, it was still good.”

“That’s not a bad plan ya got there.” 

Asmo turned to look at Mammon and rolled his eyes, “Ah yes, because this won’t be suspicious, and Lucifer totally won’t figure us out.”

“You just leave ol’ Luci to me,” Mammon grinned, slapping Asmo’s back, “Your big brother Mammon is gonna make sure we get you with your lil admirer.”

His brothers were going to assure that Asmo would die single.

Suddenly, Solomon clapped his hands together, bringing all eyes back to him. “Well, this entire situation has been fun, but unfortunately I need to steal Asmodeus away, we still have things we need to get done,” he smiled, somehow managing to free Asmodeus from his brothers and encourage him towards the door. “We’ll leave the plotting to the rest of you, have fun!”

Asmo shook Solomon’s hands off of him as soon as they were out of sight. “What was that about? Do you enjoy the pain my brothers put me through?” he huffed, making his way upstairs, Solomon following quickly behind him, “We don’t even have any more work to do!” Or rather Asmo didn’t feel like being productive anymore. Once they left Solomon’s, he’d lost any motivation to do anything outside of his designs.

“It didn’t seem that bad to me.”

“You don’t understand, you don’t have to live with them. I love them all dearly, but I can’t.” Asmo opened the door to his room and flopped over onto his bed, “And they still have my letter, and they read it before me! The nerve.”

He felt the bed shift a bit and Solomon place something on his chest, “Oh? Are you so sure about that?”

_ His letter _ .

“Oh Solomon I love you and your little nerdy tricks!” Asmo squealed, wrapping his arms around his waist and squeezing tight, “Thank you thank you  _ thank you _ !” Oh he could go on and on about how much he adored Solomon in this moment. Well, more than normal. It was also possible that just  _ maybe  _ Solomon’s little magic tricks had more uses than just for showing off at parties.

Solomon’s hand rubbed against his shoulder, “I know how much they mean to you.” Asmo could feel Solomon’s eyes on him as he let go, fingers dancing along the edge of the paper. Solomon always knew what was important to Asmo, but that’s just how friends were right? After all, Asmo knew what was important to Solomon. Sometimes he wouldn’t see him for weeks because he became so buried within his studies or a new book he found interesting. Then he would get paragraphs of text messages or hour long phone conversations if they couldn’t meet in person. He liked hearing about it,even if he didn’t understand what Solomon was talking about. He was passionate about his fascinations, and Asmo liked that.

“Are you going to read it?”

Asmo let out a soft hum in contemplation before setting the letter down. “Later. I like to read them when I’m alone. Reading someone else’s words of affection is a very intimate thing,” he said, “But of course you can expect me to tell you all about it later.” He wished he could have kept the first read for his eyes only, but it couldn’t be helped now. Maybe Secret would be a little more  _ secret  _ next time. Or at least they could be a little more careful when it came to their placement of the letters. What if they wrote something meant for his eyes only? Or what if his brothers interpreted something wrong? Or what if Lucifer found them?

“I can tell you what we can do though,” he smiled, getting up off of the bed, and towards his closet. Hanging up nice and neat in plastic wrap was his class project. “I finished the adjustments, and since you’re here-” He skipped back over and pushed it towards Solomon expectantly. “Try it on? Just to make sure I have it right?”

Of course he did it right. This wasn’t the first project he’d done with Solomon.

Nonetheless, Solomon would still amuse him, and  _ damn  _ did he look good. 

The only thing that Asmo couldn’t take his eyes off of was the flower. The silk yellow petals were still closed tightly. Nimble fingers gently peeled them back, making them open up ever so slightly. It reminded him of a starburst unfolding against the night sky. Overall, the slight bloom to the flower added to the design. “Does everything feel alright? Nothing too tight?”

“I think we’re good to go. What are you going to do with it when your project is done?”

“Well, I was thinking I could use it as an example of my work, if you don’t mind me taking pictures of you in it. You are my perfect model after all!”

Solomon leaned against him, eyes shifting towards the corner of the ceiling, a drawn out hum starting to leave his mouth. Asmo snorted and shoved Solomon half heartedly. 

“ _ And  _ my most absolutely, positively, wonderful, bestest friend in the entire world whom I adore.” 

Just as Asmo was about to invite Solomon to stay for dinner, his phone buzzed. Solomon unlocked it, eyes scanning over the words before slumping against the counter. “I forgot that meeting was tonight…” he sighed, setting the phone down while carefully unbuttoning the jacket. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t forget to tell me  _ all  _ about your letter, Asmodeus.”

Even if Solomon wasn’t serious, how  _ could  _ he forget?

******

“Come on Lucifer, come out, just for one night.”

“I can’t, and unfortunately my answer will remain so no matter how many times you ask.”

Asmo was coming down the stairs when Lucifer walked through the door. Currently he was kneeling on the ground, undoing the leash of a very wiggly Cerberus. Diavolo was next to him, trying to make eye contact, but Lucifer’s eyes were fixed on the dog. As soon as Cerberus was free, he took off down the hallway and then back towards the door before sitting and wagging the weapon that Lucifer called a tail.

“Cerberus,  _ sit _ ,” Lucifer commanded, before standing and looking down at Diavolo, “It’s my turn to cook tonight. It would be nothing short of irresponsible to back out last minute, not to mention unfair to the others.” 

Diavolo’s frown deepened and Asmo swore his eyes got a little bigger. It was only then that he noticed Barbatos, who stepped in between the two. “Perhaps another time Sir. I can schedule you a time next Thursday? I believe I could shift some things around,” he said, snapping open a calendar from his person. Asmo could only hope he had a secretary as good as Barbatos, whenever he made it big. 

“Tonight would be just as swell,” Diavolo insisted, “Besides, things have been busy,  _ incredibly  _ busy. Surely you can take a break just this once! Let me take you out. It’s my treat.” 

“You really don’t need to. You’ve already done more than enough for me.”   
  


“Just let me Lucifer, please, let yourself relax.”

Asmo leaned against the banister as he listened with amusement. Sure Diavolo had known Lucifer for a while, but Asmo had known his big brother since he’d been born. Hell would freeze over before Lucifer gave into anything that caused him to deviate from a plan or schedule. Well, anything he considered minor, if it was serious he’d do whatever he could. He liked watching the man try to win his brother over though. He’d asked Lucifer before if there was anything more serious going on between the two of them, but he was only met with a sharp glare that screamed ‘none of your business’. Well maybe it was none of his business, but he still liked to know. Lucifer had always made sure all of his brothers were on their best behavior whenever Diavolo was over. He could still remember how he nervously paced the halls the first time he invited him over and introduced him to his tiny family. Asmo remembered liking Diavolo because he let him put one of his bows in his hair. It was only an issue when his brothers invaded his privacy, but everyone else was fair game. 

Usually these little back and forths lasted for a while, and most of the time Diavolo would head home with that puppy dog head of his hanging and Barbatos penciling in a quick four o’ clock for dinner after work. It was always amusing even if he was watching reruns most of the time. Lucifer was just about to win the battle once again when a new voice interrupted him. 

“Go on ahead Luci, take the night off fo’ yo’self.”

All heads turned to Mammon, who was standing a little farther down the hallway. Asmo wondered what he could possibly be playing at, or what he had done that might get him in trouble with Lucifer. Then it clicked. He was actually going to make an attempt to throw Levi’s hand into action. No way. 

Lucifer’s eyes narrowed and his entire body seemed to become stiffer. He looked like a snake ready to strike. “Mammon-”

“Nah, I mean it. I’ll take the rest of the boys out somewhere else. When’s the last time you’ve had a break huh? Let Dia treat you.”

Diavolo lit up and turned from Mammon back to Lucifer, “See? It looks like you’ll have dinner covered! Come on Lucifer, I’ll even let you pick where we go out to!” Even from where he was Asmo could see the twitch in Lucifer’s eye. 

“Mammon. If I even get word or discover that you are up to something-”

“Hey! Hey! Relax! I ain’t plottin nothin!” Mammon said, looking rather offended, “Is it so suspicious that I wanna do something nice for my little brothers and give our biggest dearest brother a night off?”

“He’s being nice Lucifer,” Diavolo said, sneaking one of his hands up to Lucifer’s shoulder, “Come. Have dinner. Enjoy a night off. You’ve been working so hard.” 

The tension emitting from Lucifer could have cut the silence of the room like a knife. But his will was cracking. Between Mammon’s offer and Diavolo’s insistence it was hard to say no. Lucifer let out a slow breath, Asmo leaned over the banister a little more.

“Asmodeus.”

Asmo let out a squeak and stumbled back a bit as Lucifer’s eyes turned up towards him.

“Come here. If you’re done with your eavesdropping that is.” It wasn’t a request. Asmo made his way down the stairs and stood in front of his brother. “You and the others will make sure Mammon does as he says-”

Mammon let out a scoff.

“-and let me know if something happens otherwise.”

Diavolo’s eyes lit up and a blinding grin plastered itself across his face. Asmo couldn’t help but notice how happy his brother made Diavolo, or how (even if Lucifer wouldn’t say so himself to their family) Lucifer seemed in better spirits after spending time with Diavolo. It was sweet. Maybe one day Diavolo could get Lucifer to loosen up.

“Asmodeus?”

“Of course brother dearest.”

Mammon mumbled under his breath, “ _ Kiss up _ .”

Lucifer nodded, somewhat satisfied, but still a little apprehensive. He turned to Diavolo and nodded, “Shall we then?”

Asmo had never seen anyone nod faster as Diavolo took his brother’s arm, “ _ Yes _ . Don’t worry, I’ll make sure tonight is nothing but relaxing for you! You won’t regret a thing I promise!” 

Lucifer turned his head one last time.  _ Be safe _ . 

He cared, he really did. Then they were gone, Barbatos swiftly following behind and Cerberus watching even after the door closed. 

“I believe you owe me a thank you now,” Mammon said, slinging his arm around Asmo’s shoulder.

“ _ Thank you _ ?”

“You’re welcome!”

Asmo groaned. It was going to be an incredibly long night. 

*******

“I can’t think of anything more appropriate than takeout.”

“Mammon.”

“Y’know why?”

“ _ Mammon I swear to g- _ ”

“Stakeout Takeout!”

“ _ Mammon _ .”

This night was going to be worse than long. It was an absolute nightmare that Asmo couldn’t wait to wake up from. Currently Asmo was in the back seat with three of his other brothers, with Mammon and Levi in the front. If they got arrested because they had too many people in the car Lucifer would kill them. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to find out who Secret was, he just didn’t want to find out like this. Not with his brothers surrounding him. 

“I thought stakeouts had steaks,” Beel said, through mouthfuls of food, “You know, kind of like a cookout.”

“I also thought that we were supposed to be in more than one location,” Belphie grumbled, slumped against, Beel’s shoulder. While this was true, currently they only had one functioning car and Lucifer’s was off limits. 

Asmo was moving his food across the little styrofoam container. His appetite had abandoned him. How could he eat in a situation like this? It was unthinkable! Besides, even if the chances of catching Secret were slim, they were still there. They hadn’t even really planned how to do this. Mammon just shoved everyone in his car and then sped off down the road. 

“Aren’t you going to eat Asmo?”

“Huh?” At first Asmo wondered if Beel was just looking at his food, then he noticed the concern. He quickly looked away and back down at his plate, “I dunno, I’m just not really hungry. You can have it if you want.” 

Beel shook his head, the concern not leaving his eyes, “Are you alright?”

Asmo didn’t answer. What if he would be disappointed when he finally met Secret? In all honesty he needed to stop comparing them to Solomon. Solomon was Solomn, and no one else would be like him, and Solomon wasn’t into him. It hurt, but it was the truth. He needed to stop thinking it was him, he would only get hurt when the inevitable occurred.

….

_ But then again- _

_ It could be him _ .

Wouldn’t that be the perfect romance? His best friend, who he adored, falling in love with him. But it didn’t make sense. The handwriting was too neat to be Solomon’s, the curves were too perfect.  _ But it still could be _ . 

“Alright!” Mammon’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts, “Welcome to our official first stakeout to find out who’s been havin the eyes for our little Asmo.” He leaned back in his chair looking back at all of them as Levi remained focused on some sort of software program on his laptop. “Objective number one, come up with a plan of action.”

“Is this because you drove us all the way out to this alley and then realized we had no way of tracking this person down?” Satan didn’t even bother looking up from his book as he spoke. He seemed bored. Satan was more of a neutral participant in the whole thing. Asmo was at least grateful he wasn’t encouraging any of this. 

“‘Ey shut it,” Mammon hissed, making Satan smirk. He knew he’d hit the nail on the head. “Anyways, Levi is working on something that should be able to help us out with this whole thing, right Levi?”

“Uh… Maybe?” 

“Good enough for me!”

“In any case,” Levi took over, “In order to have a successful stakeout, and catch out perp-”

“They’re not a  _ criminal _ ,” Asmo interjected. Honestly, Asmo might cry if they were. He really needed positivity coming his way when it came to this… Why couldn’t his Secret just stayed his secret?

“-We’ll need bait,” Levi finished, pretending that Asmo hadn’t just interrupted him.

Mammon grinned and lowered his glasses, looking directly at Asmo, “And that’s where you come in our darling little brother.”

“Excuse me?”

“Your little Romeo’s only ever left stuff in your bag or in our mailbox. So it’s natural to assume that they know ya pretty well,” Mammon said lying back even further. Asmo would admit, his wording made it sound a little creepy, and he could feel both Satan and Beel’s concerned eyes glancing towards him. “So, reason stands that they would have to be near you at some point in the day!”

Mammon was practically beaming, like he’d just cracked some sort of major mystery. However, Asmo wasn’t too impressed. There was a glaring problem with Mammon’s oh so  _ obvious point _ .

“Mammon. I am on a college campus. I am constantly surrounded by people.”   
  


Mammon snorted, “Well, we’ll just have someone keep an eye out! Like Beel and Belphie!”

Belphie was already fast asleep on Beel’s shoulder, and Beel had stopped paying attention to Mammon’s plan and was digging into the takeout. However, Beel did glance up for just a moment, looking apologetic as a noodle disappeared into his mouth.

“I’m sorry…. Was I supposed to be listening? If you say it again I promise I’ll listen this time.”

Mammon’s head fell onto the horn of his car.

*******

_ Your smile lights up my days _

_ Even in the darkest of nights  _

_ I know that you would always guide me home _

_ Your laughter dances over my thoughts _

_ Possessing my entire being. _

_ I adore adore you _

_ Everything about you _

_ Everything you  _ **_are_ **

_ Has anyone ever told you you’re intelligent? _

_ That you’re so incredibly creative? _

_ You could create a new world if you wanted to _

_ An entire universe. _

_ I would follow you there _

_ Because any world created by your hands would be paradise. _

_ Any being living there would be blessed, _

_ Because you’re kind _

_ And loving _

_ And perfect. _

_ I would follow you anywhere if you asked _

_ And I would give up everything in order to do so. _

_ Think of me, _

_ Your Secret _

Saving this letter til after he had got home from this disaster of a night had been a wonderful idea. Asmo could feel a warmth spreading throughout his entire body. Secret cared about more than just his looks. Of course Asmo knew he was attractive, he’d always known. In fact, he’d had partners be with him solely for his looks, like a past girlfriend, who’d said all of their pictures would be beautiful. He hadn’t matched exactly the way she’d wanted for one once, and that was it. Or how another partner had brought him to a party his freshman year of college, only to be shown off to various people he didn’t know. He left back home alone that night, it was all too uncomfortable. But Secret  _ cared _ . Secret paid attention to him. Secret wrote like there was more to him. 

He had to stop the tears from dripping onto the parchment. 

Now wonder his brothers were determined to find them.

Even though it was late, Asmo couldn’t sleep. He’d been tired before, when he first got home from their first (and according to Mammon and Levi it wasn’t their last) failed attempt at a stakeout. He’d wanted nothing more than to curl up and go to sleep. But now… Now as he laid there with wet eyes, all he could think about was how it would feel to have his Secret whisper those words to him in the dark.


	6. Sweet Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes! It is up and it is here! Despite it being Friday the 13th I have managed to post the fic XD. Thank you all once more for your support! It means a lot. If you want to find me on tumblr or talk you;ll find me on @RueSinger. Also to those of you that made requests I promise I didn't forget about them! I started on them, things just got busy with school and life :,). I will get them done though! Thank you all so much for everything I really appreciate it!

Asmo was exhausted when his alarm went off. It wasn’t the normal morning grogginess. He probably would have been mildly tired no matter what this morning. Mammon hadn’t gotten them back from their stakeout until near one in the morning. Honestly he was surprised Lucifer hadn’t been up in the living room and ready to reprimand them. They were all adults sure, but Lucifer never seemed to move past the idea that they were all still six years old.

Actually… Lucifer wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Asmo had just come down from his routine and into the dining room like he always did, but there was no Lucifer… Beel and Belphie were in their normal spots, but the coffee pot was left completely unattended. “Did Lucifer leave already?” he asked, turning towards the twins. The fact that Lucifer wasn’t there threw him off a bit. It just… wasn’t like him. 

Beel shook his head, “Not that I’m aware of, we haven’t seen him.” Asmo nodded and turned back around to get his breakfast together and pour himself a little extra coffee. Normally he would wait until he got onto campus, but he was going to need a little extra boost today.

“Asmo?” Beel asked as he put his bagel in the toaster. “I’m sorry we read your letter. The more I thought about it… The more I realized how much we upset you. We really shouldn’t have done it.”

Oh sweet Beelzebub. Always his darling younger brother.

Asmo sighed and leaned against the counter. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it now… But thank you Beel,” he said. At least one of his brothers still kind of respected both his privacy and his personal life. Of course it wasn’t  _ okay  _ that it happened, but how could he stay mad at Beel? Especially when he had the sweetest puppy dog face he’d ever seen. He was just so innocent. 

He’d let Beel and Satan meet Secret first. It would be an excellent way to steal his nerves for when he had to introduce them to Lucifer. After all, Lucifer’s approval was the one that he really needed.

“Do they make you happy?”

Asmo stopped for a moment and stared at the wall in front of him. “Well of course, I love getting letters from them, but even then, even if they do, it doesn’t matter unless they get Lucifer’s stamp of approval,” he sighed, picking up his bagel from the toaster as it popped up. 

Beel was silent for a while, turning to look at a snoring Belphie who was slumped against his shoulder. It was almost as if he was contemplating waking up his twin to confer with him before speaking again. Then he turned back to Asmo, “I don’t think Lucifer would have a problem.”

He had to stop himself from laughing. “Really? You don’t think so? Are we talking about the same Lucifer?” he asked, “The same Lucifer has a little  _ talk  _ with anyone that gets brought into this house? You know, the one where some people come out looking like they've met Death? The same Lucifer who compares everything to ‘a case he had one time’ to explain why it would end bad and why we should just forget about it?” Honestly Asmo could go on. Lucifer was strict and overprotective. He’s always been. Should he have had to raise them? No. But they were all adults now, and he didn’t have to be so….  _ Lucifer _ all the time. Of course he adored his big brother, he always had, but sometimes even he thought he could be a little ridiculous (especially when it came to him wanting to have fun). He’d broken some of his rules before and come out completely fine. He’d snuck out of the house and nothing bad happened.

“Well, you said they make you happy, and Lucifer just wants what’s best,” Beel reasoned, “So… he shouldn’t have a problem. If you’re happy and safe, that’s all that matters.” He was always so optimistic, Asmo honestly wished he wasn’t worried about what Lucifer would say. He wanted to believe he'd be happy for him, but he could also see the worst in Asmo’s Secret… It made a knot form in the pit of his stomach.

“Maybe…” he sighed. Honestly it would be so nice and easy to believe that Lucifer wouldn’t be difficult about it, but he wasn’t that delusional. 

“It’s almost like you’ve never met Lucifer,” Belphie murmured, eyes opening only slightly.

“I mean, he could-”

“Do you really think so?”

There was a silence between the twins for a moment. Asmo felt like there was a conversation going on between them that he couldn’t hear. Sometimes it was creepy. He wasn’t sure if he’d really ever understand it. 

Finally Beel broke the silence, “Yeah, I do.” 

Asmo wished he had that certainty…

******

He felt Solomon nudge him after Demonology. He wasn’t normally one to fall asleep in class. He hadn’t even realized that he had dozed off. Had the professor seen him? He hoped not. Honestly he hoped that (for once) no one noticed him. It was embarrassing him. “Are you alright?” he asked, “Usually you do your nails when you’re bored, not fall asleep.”

He looked genuinely concerned, and if made Asmo forget his worries for just a moment and smile.

Asmo stretched out over his desk before standing up, still trying to get his wits about himself. “My  _ brothers _ ,” he yawned, “They were so  _ sold  _ on this stakeout thing… I didn’t get home till late last night. Or I guess early this morning if you want to get technical.” What he wouldn’t give for a nap. If only he had the confidence to curl up in one of the common rooms and stay there like Belphie did. He was actually close to giving in and just finding a spot where no one could see him. Why did he have to be so self conscious about everything he did?

“So you need coffee.” 

Oh Solomon knew him so well. “Can it be a double shot today? Just to make sure I’m awake,” he asked, bumping into Solomon’s side as they exited the classroom. Other students bustled around them, some sprinting to other classes and others laughing and chatting with friends. It really could be any of them… Anyone one of his fellow classmates could be sending him the letters, anyone of them could be Secret, anyone of them could have captured his heart. Of course Asmo had his preferences, but the thought alone-

The chilly fall air snapped Asmo back to his senses and sent a shudder through him. How far were they into the semester again? Where had the semester gone? Would Secret continue to pursue him after this if he never found them?

Time was so fickle. One minute it was drudging by barely making an effort to move, and in the next instant a day passed by within a single second.

Asmo was never aware of time passing by when he was with Solomon. In a sense, every moment with him was magical. 

“What’s up?” Solomon asked.

“Just… Just a lot on my mind is all… I just need my coffee.”

The campus cafe had a rather mellow atmosphere. People were chatting, working on projects, or just enjoying some alone time. Light filtered in from the large windows on the walls and espresso filled his senses. Plants also hung from hooks on the ceiling. All in all it was a nice place. He and Solomon were sitting in one of the booths, bloomed flowers hanging next to them and had dropped a few soft, bright petals onto their table. Asmo enjoyed picking them up and carefully playing with them between his fingers. They still felt crisp and smooth, not yet wilted or withered. They were pretty too. He should really get some more flowers for his room. After a few sips of coffee, Asmo found himself able to form some more coherent thoughts. He still wanted a nap, but at least his head no longer felt like static. 

“We were all crammed in Mammon’s car. Levi and Mammon didn’t even have a  _ plan _ . We just sat there staring at nothing! I have no clue how Belphie was sleeping in the back. We were all crammed together! It was awful, just awful,” he huffed, setting his coffee down, “Like, I can  _ kind of  _ get it, but why can’t they just let me handle this in my own way? I’m an adult, they don’t need to be in my business.”

Solomon’s smile was telling. Of course he didn’t think the night was as horrible as Asmodeus was saying. “Sounds like a nice time out with your family if you ask me,” he said.

“You would think so. It’s a wonder we even got past Lucifer.” 

Asmo swore it was all because the universe had lined up perfectly just to spite him. 

But how could he be mad at Solomon? Solomon who had such a wonderful smile. The sunlight created a lustrous glow around him, and who’s eyes he could absolutely become lost in. Solomon who was so smart, and considerate, and cunning, and-

…..

Maybe taking a break from the dating scene had been a mistake. Sure his last relationship had been an absolute dumpster fire, and sure he had Secret’s letters… But this time alone was starting to awaken feelings inside him that he’d prefer to stay down. He’d only get hurt… He knew that Solomon didn’t think of him that way. Yet his thoughts always drifted to the what ifs. What if Solomon actually liked him? What if Solomon wanted to touch him like he did in his dreams? What if Solomon was Secret?

He really needed more self restraint. He needed his old crush to stop already.

“Oh! I almost forgot to tell you about my letter,” Asmo chirped, then he let out a dreamy sigh, “It was absolutely  _ divine _ . I didn’t think it was possible for one person to say so many wonderful things to me in a letter.” 

No one had taken the time to write him one before…

“Oh? So you liked it?”

“Is that even a question?” he asked. Of course he loved it! It was so sweet, and wonderful. “It was so kind… You know people usually focus on my looks, and I mean they  _ should _ . I am drop dead gorgeous after all.”

Solomon snorted at the dramatics, as Asmo struck a pose and flipped his hair back ever so slightly (and it landed  _ perfectly _ ), but let him continue on about his letter.

“But, they also focus on other parts of me, you know, the nonphysical things…” he stopped for a moment. How did he express how it made him feel? “It’s… It’s just so- It really… so… so-”

Solomon’s smirk disappeared, and his eyebrows furrowed together. Asmo couldn’t understand why until he found himself sniffling and his vision becoming blurry.  _ Dammit  _ he wasn’t about to let his makeup smear. Solomon passed him a napkin and Asmo carefully dabbed at the underneath of his eyes. 

“So-?”

“ _ So sweet _ .”

Was it simple wording? Yes. Did it come anywhere close to describing what he was feeling or Secret’s wonderful way with words? Absolutely not. But it was the only thing Asmo could think of. The only words his mind would allow him to use to explain Secret’s love.

And in no way was it enough.

Was there even a word to describe how he truly felt?

Asmo was embarrassed about how he was tearing up in public. It was just so… so wonderful. Secret was so wonderful. Just thinking about that last letter unearthed so many emotions within him. It was silly. He’d been in relationships before. He’d had nice things said to him before.

Why was this so different?

Well, he knew why, but he was afraid to admit it.

It was time to change the subject. He couldn’t spend the rest of his day with blotchy, red tinted eyes. “Maybe you could take some handwriting lessons from them when we find them when we find them,” he chuckled, still dabbing at his eyes, “You could finally make that chicken scratch you call notes into something legible.”

“I think my handwriting is legible.”

“So it’s legible to other people.”

“Are you saying you can’t read my notes?”

“Not unless I’m sitting next to you so you can read them to me,” Asmo snorted, and Solomon’s smile returned to his face. Although Asmo couldn’t get the odd weight out of his chest. It felt like someone took a rock and dropped it inside of him, weighing him down despite his want to float above it all. 

Solomon grabbed his things and started to move from his seat, “Well, maybe I can write a book to help you read it better. You could nap at the apartment while I work on it if you’d like.”

“Oh how  _ gentlemanly  _ of you,” Asmo laughed. That same bell like laugh that Secret adored, “Mmm, but a quiet place to have an uninterrupted nap is incredibly tempting.”

As Solomon helped him out of the booth, Asmo’s phone went off.

…

Odd.

“Hello?”

“No sign of suspicious activity. Over.”

“ _ Levi _ ?” His brothers rarely called him when he was still on campus. Furthermore, it was usually to either tell the twins something, to ask him to pick something up on his way home, or to inform him of last minute family plans. They were never weird like this.

“You didn’t say over. Over.”

“Levi what are you  _ talking  _ about? Where are you?”

“Omg Asmo just say  _ over.  _ Over.”

Asmo let out an annoyed sigh and rolled his eyes in Solomon’s direction. This was ridiculous. “ _ Fine.  _ What do you want?”

Silence.

Levi’s pout was palpable through the speaker

Asmo groaned. “Over.”

This was dumb, but Levi now sounded pleased. 

“We’re continuing our stakeout like we said we would. Mammon had me and the twins to scout out your campus today. I’m rotating out with him and Satan. Over.”

“You can’t be serious. At my  _ school _ ?”

“You forgot to say over,” Solomon mused, leaning into Asmo’s phone. The warmth of his breath caressed Asmo’s skin. He suppressed the shudder that desperately wanted to run through him and shot Solomon a look. All Solomon did was laugh in response. 

“Beel tells me that there’s no one by the snack bar,” Asmo heard, Levi sigh, “And I think Belphie fell asleep on his phone. Unless this keysmashing is a new form of code. Over.”

“You really don’t need to do this…. Over.”

“Oh but we do! Just think about all of the implications this has! Remember that manga I was telling you about? It has the greatest ending once they find out who it is and I can only imagine-”

“ _ Perfect _ .  _ Great _ . Listen, I’m sure you have some work to get back to and Solomon and I are  _ busy _ and have plans so goodbye Levi! Love you! See you later!  _ At home. _ Not on my  **_campus_ ** .”

_ Click _ .

Asmo needed that nap.

*****

Solomon’s bed was comfortable. Not that Asmo’s wasn’t, but a bed in general had never felt more heavenly (and Asmo had been in a lot of them). It smelt like him, and it was oddly comforting. Like a candle that had just been snuffed out, or like a distant fire. It was wrapped all around him and lulled Asmo into a sense of security. Everything was safe and secure and alright. He was alright. He’d woken up to more of Luke’s treats and hot chocolate and a warm greeting from Simeon once he stepped out of Solomon’s room, and Solomon working on his latest project on the couch. The sun fell on him in the most perfect of ways. Asmo couldn’t help but stare. He wondered only for a moment if Simeon noticed him, but that thought didn’t last long before Solomon invited him to join him for a bit. He asked him about his nap, if he felt better now, if he’d like him to walk him home once more. 

It felt wonderful.

It was perfect.

It was nothing short of peaceful.

This was what absolute bliss felt like, and it kept relaying in his mind long after he got home.

What he wouldn’t give to have this be his day to day life.

Especially after he found the next letter.

Perhaps it was over optimistic of him to believe that Solomon wrote it, but he had been with Solomon all day and he hadn’t noticed anyone else. The thought of Solomon made his heart flutter as he read over it. He felt so incredibly stupid giggling and wiping away stray tears as he read and reread the words over and over and over again. This was what Secret did to him… Or… Well...What  _ Solomon  _ did to him he supposed. He made him feel so wonderful, like he could float on air. No one had ever made him feel quite like this. Something was blooming within Asmo. He wasn’t sure what it was quite yet, but he loved it. 

A Crush? Love? Adoration? 

It didn’t matter. What mattered was that it was Asmo’s, and that he never wanted it to end, and he never wanted it to stop making him feel so wonderful.

_ If I could rewrite the past for you and give you the life you deserved _

_ I would _

_ If I had any say in how things went _

_ I would make sure you had the most pleasant dreams when you slept at night _

_ I would rip every star from the night sky and weave you a crown if I were able _

_ I would go to the gates of Hell itself and back _

_ And face off against the devil himself. _

_ I would do it all for you _

_ Because everything about you is wonderful in my eyes _

_ I want to give you the best, _

_ To take care of you, _

_ And give you everything I have  _

_ Until there is nothing left to give. _

_ Because you deserve every good thing this world has to give _

_ I adore you. _

_ I  _ **_love_ ** _ you. _

_ I want to be closer to you. _

_ I’ll never leave you. _

_ For as long as my heart beats _

_ It belongs to you _

_ And no one else. _

_ You are my everything _

_ My eternity. _

_ An existence without you is not one at all.  _

_ You haunt my dreams and my thoughts _

_ And I wouldn’t have it any other way. _

_ You deserve so much in this life, _

_ And in any other. _

_ I will give you everything I have until there’s nothing left. _

_ My Darling, Think of Me, _

_ Your Secret _

It made him melt, just like the pink, heart-shaped candies in his mouth. Maybe Solomon had improved his penmanship after all.

The words plagued his thoughts long after he put the letter down, towing with the idea of texting Solomon in reference to the letter. Should he send something playful? Something flirty? Of course he wanted to be creative. Solomon had put so much into his little gifts and letters. The living room TV played quietly in the living room as he sat on the couch. For once the room was quiet and absent of anyone else other than himself and Cerberus who was laying on the floor contently. Every now and again Asmo would read down to scratch his ears or pet his soft fur. It was an odd feeling, but after being harassed by his brothers, it was welcomed. What made it even sweeter was the mood going to Solomon’s had put him in. 

However, the silence also brought his attention closer to the creaking door opening and closing, and Cerberus’ head perked up. Lucifer came in rubbing his temples and for a moment the two brothers made eye contact. Lucifer looked completely thrown off and his clothes from yesterday were slung over one arm. The clothes he was currently wearing were definitely not his. They were too big, too loose, too  _ comfortable _ . It definitely was not a Lucifer look. It was an odd sight, and it took Asmo a while to process. Then it hit Asmo and his jaw dropped. He’d always joked and pressed about it, but really?

“Asmodeus,” Lucifer warned, eyes boring into Asmo’s very soul.

“No, you  _ didn’t _ .”

“Asmodeus, do not.”

“Did you really-?”

“ _ Asmodeus _ .”

“You spent the night!” the last bit came out as a squeal and Lucifer rubbed his temples. 

Asmo couldn’t believe it.Had he been right? Did his brother and Diavolo have a thing going on? He always thought it was obvious but-

“Someone drank a little too much when we went out and I couldn’t leave him,” Lucifer huffed, “So I made sure he was alright.”

“I drink a little too much sometimes and I’m able to come home and be by myself alright. Hypothetically.” 

The only reason Asmo added that ‘hypothetically’ was because of the look Lucifer shot him. Of course, his darling younger brother would absolutely  _ never  _ go out and get trashed only to wander back to his room (or to Solomon’s) and crash. He was always fine though, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. Asmo could take care of himself.

“Come on, you can tell me! I love hearing all about romance, you know that,” Asmo begged. Was he being a hypocrite on multiple levels? Absolutely. Did he care? Nope.

Lucifer sighed and shook his head, “I like to keep my private life private Asmodeus. I do not speak on my relationship with Diavolo because I do not want to. That is that.”

“You could bring him over more…”

The two stared at each other once more. Both were withholding information that neither of them were willing to discuss. 

“Don’t start spreading my personal matters to other people. I allow you privacy with your relationships, I only ask the same of you.”

Asmo huffed and fell back onto the couch. Yeah, Lucifer didn’t want to hear the juicy details of his relationships (which were always Asmo’s favorite part about hearing of other people’s relationships) only when things went wrong. Which… Asmo wasn’t completely mad at him for. He didn’t snoop around like some of his other brothers, and he had gotten Asmo out of a few rough patches with other partners. Sure, he could be a little overbearing at times and parental to a fault, but at the end of the day he cared. He didn’t want to see them hurt.

But Asmo could also take care of himself. Even if something bad happened. He could take care of himself. 

After a moment, he nodded reluctantly and slumped down a bit, “Fine.” He watched Lucifer circle over to pat Cerberus’ head before heading off to his room, Cerberus in tow. “But can you tell me a little bit? Later. On your own terms?”

He still wanted to know… Lucifer always seemed happy with Diavolo….

Lucifer stopped and for the third time that night, a silence settled between them. Had Asmo gone too far? He was just about to slink away to his room and forget about his question when Lucifer turned his head to look at him. “Perhaps… We’ll see. Goodnight Asmodeus. Sweet dreams.”

And then he was gone.

_ Sweet dreams indeed _ .

  
That night, Asmo found himself surrounded by Solomon’s smokey aroma in his dreams. It was comforting and wonderful. He could help but think about how Diavolo and Lucifer had most likely been curled up together, and Solomon did the same to him in his dream. He held him closer than any partner had ever held him before. He allowed Solomon to take Secret’s place. To let those honey-laced words pour our in Solomon’s smooth, even voice. It was perfect. It was all  _ beyond  _ perfect. This was what Asmo wanted. Fuck his self restraint. He’d let his heart run wild. After all, it had to be Solomon.  _ It just had to be _ . He couldn’t understand how it couldn’t be him. Besides, Solomon’s presence was welcomed, and a wonderful one to fill his dreams.


	7. A Little Flirting Never Hurt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super excited mainly because after this chapter I'm going to be getting into a lot of things that I've had planned since the begining. I also have some breaks coming up soon and I'll have more time to write (hopefully). I still have the two requests that I've been working on, so hopefully I'll also be able to work on them a little bit. Thank you all for everything! Your comments, kudos, and just the fact that you're here is wonderful, thank you all so much!  
> Updates happen on Fridays (US eastern time).  
> If you'd like to talk to me on Tumblr you can find me @RueSinger

“So, tomorrow’s my project,” Asmo purred into his phone, twisting a strand of hair on his index finger, “You ready to be the most handsome model in the entire room?”

He’d been trying to teeter on the line of flirtation. Self restraining be damned, but he couldn’t just come right out right and say it. No. That would ruin the fun of the chase. He knew, and now he had to let Solomon know he knew. Then when he did confess it would make it all that much sweeter.

Solomon chuckled on the other side of the receiver and shift around, “You sound awfully confident in that idea. What makes you so sure I’d be the most handsome model in the room?” 

Asmo giggled and bit his lip, “Oh believe me, I just  _ know _ .” Now he’d be able to fully appreciate Solomon in the outfit he made for him. It fit him so nicely and made him look just like some of the models he used to save from magazines. “Maybe you could even pin your hair back for me! Oh you’d look just like a professional!” Asmo couldn’t stop the way his voice raised. Oh just the  _ image  _ of Solomon with his hair styled just so-! It was almost too much for him to bear! 

Maybe he should make his new line of clothing focusing on smart being the new sexy, but have it centered around Solomon. He could focus on the secretive aspects of him. Oh it could be so wonderful… 

Or he could focus on the feeling in his chest. It had always been there, but now it was finally coming to fruition. He was allowing himself to nurture and care for it, and it was finally blooming. He already had ideas swimming around in his head. Reaching out for his sketchbook and started on the outline of the design. Maybe he should make it a set? 

“You told your profs that you wouldn’t be in right? I wanna make sure I make you look absolutely stunning when I present you to my class. Not that you’re not incredibly hot already,” Asmo smiled, “I just need to make sure my touch ups give you justice.” It would also give him more alone time with Solomon, which, in the end, is what he really wanted. 

“You’re sure we can’t just do it on campus? I can change in a bathroom stall.”

Asmo made a noise akin to that of a goose being strangled at the sheer thought alone. He couldn’t even form a sentence. The  _ audacity  _ of this man. He almost ruined his newest idea… Almost.

“Alright, I can hear the no. Don’t worry I’ll be over, and then I will be at your mercy.”

That was certainly interesting wording.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“Oh that is far from my intent.”

Was Asmo reading too much into this? Perhaps. But it didn’t stop the warmth continuously coursing through him. Maybe he should use a deeper red and fade it into yellow? He really wanted to capture the warmth, how it unfurled in layers, each one a little more intense than the last. It was a slow progression that required nourishment and care in order for it to thrive.

Does this mean that Solomon had had feelings for him all this time too?

Honestly, the thought made Asmo want to smack himself. All this time, they’d been dancing around each other. He shouldn’t be  _ surprised _ that Solomon liked him, there were so many things to love about Asmo. After all, all of his past lovers and partners had loved him in their own ways (right?). Each one had wanted him to some degree, each one hadn’t been ashamed to show him off, and each one had made him feel…. _ something _ . But the idea of Solomon loving him still made him dizzy and warm. 

“So,” Asmo started slowly, “You trust being in my capable hands? I guess I shouldn’t disappoint you then.”

“Oh I’m sure you won’t, and I’m also sure that you’ll ace your assignment. You always put so much work into them.” Solomon’s words made Asmo’s heart flutter. Just the way he said them, it was so genuine, so wonderfully Solomon. 

“You could stay the night and then you wouldn’t have to worry about coming over early you know.”

“A sleepover? Like when we were kids?”

Solomon’s voice was so playful. Asmo really couldn’t get enough of it. Solomon’s type of playful was sneaking. Despite being a rather studious student, he’d also always been a little mischievous. He also couldn’t help and stop to think about when they had had their last planned sleepover… Middle school maybe? Right around the time Solomon had gotten his first girlfriend… So either during or before freshman year of high school.... Nowadays it was usually  _ I’m trashed and don’t want to go home because I’m still talking to you.  _

So he lied a little to Lucifer. Sue him. They all did it from time to time. Plus, he was sure Lucifer was more than aware of what they all did, he just hadn’t caught them. Yet.

But they’d always had fun spending time with each other. They’d stay up late, talk till words would no longer come to them, sneak things (like food) into their rooms, and sometimes Solomon would even let Asmo paint his nails if he had polish. Sometimes they’d sit in the back seat of Solomon’s family car as Ash drove them to see some movie or to go to the park or some other fun event. He remembered being in awe that they were allowed to eat in the back of his car. That was one of the rules in the Morning-Star household: Nothing was to be consumed in the car. He remembered his parents being harsh about this rule (from what he did remember about them) and to an extent so was Lucifer, but Lucifer had eased up only a little bit. Solomon’s family never seemed to have as many rules as they did, but it didn’t matter… They always went out places together, wherever Solomon went Asmo wasn’t too far behind. Lucifer said Ash used to call Asmo Solomon’s little boyfriend. It was cute, but honestly Asmo hadn’t been sure if Solomon had been too keen on the title until now. Maybe there’d been some truth there. 

“I’ll have to pass this time, I have some projects I need to work on. Essays. You know, fun stuff.”

“You could do it over here! I’d let you work on your paper you know,” Asmo huffed, “I  _ always  _ get work done at your place.”

“And you’re always coming over to my place because your brothers are being loud.”

He was right, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. He huffed and crossed his arms, “You usually don’t seem to mind my brothers.”

Solomon chuckled, “We’ll schedule another time if you’d like, but for now I shall say goodnight. See you tomorrow.”

“You’re the best and I loooove yoooou.”

He could practically see Solomon’s smirk when he hung up the phone. He laid there for a few minutes, not really sure what to do. He could work on some of his assignments, but he wasn’t going to. Besides, it wasn’t that much work, he could do it later. It was too early to take a bath, and he didn’t want to waste any ounce of the new pallet he’d just bought. He also didn’t want to ruin the look he’d worked on so hard this morning. As for his newest design, now that he had a nice base he wanted to put a little more thought into it before he added anything else. He knew it would be a two part piece. Two outfits, two people. But how to make them compliment each other? That was the question.

Just as he was about to give in and start on one of his assignments, his phone went off. While he was the tiniest bit disappointed that Solomon hadn’t changed his mind about spending the night, the distraction that his brothers were providing was welcomed for once. In fact, he’d never been so quick to respond to something about the stakeout. Yes their little  _ missions _ still embarrassed him to no end, however, at least he knew now that  _ Secret  _ could navigate his brothers rather well. 

“I figured out where those chocolates were from. It was that little candy shop down the street. The one that hand dips stuff,” Beel said. As he was speaking Asmo settled down next to Satan on one of the couches. Satan raised an eyebrow and glanced away from his book to look at Asmo.

“Yeah?” Mammon grinned, “Any leads?”

“No…”

“Camera footage?” Levi cut in, “They have security footage right?”

Beel slunk back even further as both Mammon and Levi inched in closer, “Erm-”

Honestly, Mammon and Levi were taking this thing more serious than the rest of them. It was almost funny that Asmo had figured it out before they did. Oh and they were going to lose their minds when they learned who it was. Mainly because the answer was  _ so  _ incredibly easy. Asmo couldn’t help but giggle to himself. 

Satan nudged him a bit, “You seem awfully chipper being down here. Usually you’re not too happy to attend.”

Asmo hummed and continued to watch as Levi and Mammon badgered Beel causing Belphie to shift and glower. “What can I say? I don’t think anything could really spoil my mood today.”

“Oh? Is that so? And here I thought we’d both be talking about how they wouldn’t leave us alone until we came down to attend,” he said, shutting his book and matching Asmo’s smirk, “Could it be you have a new little secret? Or did you get something just as wonderful as one of your love letters?”

“Perhaps it’s both. I’m still waiting though, just in case but I’m pretty sure.”

He would have to tell Satan. That was a must. But he did have to get the information out of Solomon first. He was sure Satan would be pleased by Secret’s identity, he and Solomon did swap books a lot. Asmo was sure he wasn’t wrong, he knew he couldn’t be wrong, but he didn’t want his brothers to hound Solomon about it. Solomon’s big confession should be natural and private. It definitely wasn’t something he wanted his brothers barging in on. Besides, he wanted to make memories with Solomon that he could look back on fondly. His brothers could come into those memories a bit  _ later _ . 

“ _ Oi _ ,” Mammon snapped, ripping Asmo out of his thoughts, “We’re trying to count our leads here to catch your little lover Asmo, you and Satan can have your little gossip sesh later.”

“Mammon, I think you’re more invested in these stakeouts than I am.”

“Well, maybe we wouldn’t have to  _ have  _ a stakeout if you didn’t have so many followers! It’s hard to narrow people down when you have the masses following you!”

Asmo scoffed and moved back a bit. Oh like Mammon didn’t have a ton of followers from being a model. It wasn’t Asmo’s fault he was pretty! Mammon even taught him how to take some of those pictures. “Oh. So now it’s  _ my  _ fault that you decided to get involved in my business. Of course. I’m terribly sorry to inconvenience you in such a way.”

Did he have to be this way? No. Mammon was getting on his nerves though, and he wasn’t in the mood to bite his lip and take it. Well, Asmo was rarely in the mood to bite his lip and take it. He was a spitfire, and if anyone should know that it was his family. 

Before Mammon could growl out a response, Levi interrupted, “Oh fml, can’t we have just  _ one _ productive meeting? We don’t even have a single lead! The trail was already starting to heat up at this point in the story.”

_ Oh if Levi only knew _ . No way was Asmo letting this one slip. He wasn’t about to let his brothers harass Solomon.

“I wonder if Lucifer has any access to some useful little things.”   
  


“ _ No _ .” Asmo was quick to shut down Levi’s train of thought, “Absolutely not. We’re not getting  _ him _ involved. Lucifer would totally freak.”

Asmo could feel Beel’s eyes on him. Of course he remembered their conversation in the kitchen. He still wished he could have his confidence on how Lucifer would react, but he couldn’t. He wished he couldn’t picture Lucifer freaking out, of him thinking up the worst case scenarios about Secret. Especially now that he knew Secret was Solomon. He didn’t want to chase Solomon away. If that meant keeping Lucifer out of the loop, so be it.

He was an adult

He could make his own decisions.

He could take care of himself. 

“Alright, no Lucifer,” Levi said after a moment, “Maybe I can get some computers together, like tiny ones, almost like drones?”

Asmo didn’t doubt that his brother could pull that off. Levi was pretty tech savvy, but it would be pretty hard to do his job if he wasn’t. But that wasn’t the issue. While listening to his brothers misadventures was fun, he didn’t need little Levi drones following him around. 

“Or I could keep my private life private,” Asmo sighed, “Now what else did you guys get up to today?”

******

While it had been funny hearing all of the stupid things his brothers had done, Asmo couldn’t have been happier for their little meetings disbandment. Satan wanted to get some reading done, Levi had a ‘work project’, Beel had homework, and...well… Belphie had an exam to study for but he had fallen asleep on the couch. Asmo was at the kitchen table. There was more room to work and he could spread out his materials in front of him a little better. Plus, he’d been locked up in his room all day. Currently, he was staring at one of the faux flowers, focusing on how the petals gently curled up near the tips.Just like the curl of Solomn’s lips….

Hands slammed down onto the table and Asmo yelped, and his pencil clattered onto the table. Mammon was grinning down at him and Asmo huffed, “Can’t you bother me like a  _ normal  _ brother?” 

“Look, I know ya haven’t been the happiest with me.”

“What tipped that off?”

Mammon ran his fingers through his hair and closed his eyes, “Can you let me speak?” Asmo waited for his brother to open his eyes before leaning back in his chair and motioning for him to go on. He didn’t understand why Mammon felt the need to startle him to get his attention. It wasn’t the first time it happened, and they were all guilty of it at one point or another. But still, when he was sketching out a new design? What if he messed it up?

“Anyways, there’s this party I’m going to. Other models and maybe a few other designers might be there, or at least assistants to designers. You could, ya know, mingle a little bit,” Mammon made quotations around the word  _ mingle.  _ Oh. So this wasn’t one of those fancier parties, it was a party party that just happened to be full of higher up people.

Asmo leaned forward and cocked his head, “Is this an invite?”

“Well only if you make a post about it. Maybe your little lover will show up or somethin…”

“Aww you actually want to make it up to me! That’s so sweet!”

Mammon turned away, refusing to look at Asmo. “No way. Don’t let that thought get into yer head for a second Asmo! It’s just an opportunity to catch ‘em. That’s all! And I mean, it could be a good networkin opportunity for you.Ya do make some good designs,” he said. His arm motioned down at Asmo’s sketchbook. 

He couldn’t help but smile, “Oh sure. You can tell yourself it’s for your little stakeout. But I know the tru _ uuuth _ .”

Asmo flailed in his chair, almost falling off, when Mammon shoved him, but it did nothing to wipe the smile off his face. In fact, all it did was encourage a slew of giggles to fall from his lips. Some of his materials scattered across the desk, but none of them were harmed so Asmo didn’t pay it too much mind. “Eh shuddup.”

Mammon turned to leave as Asmo righted himself and fixed his work space. “I’ll come, but Mammon?” Asmo asked, watching as his brother stopped in the doorway, “Could I bring a little plus one along?”

“What? Your big brother isn’t enough?” he asked, making Asmo snort. He was quiet for a moment, completely relaxed against the wall. Asmo honestly wasn’t sure if he was thinking or not. “Yeah, you can bring a friend along.”

“Good, I wouldn’t be a designer if I didn’t have my model with me.”

Mammon’s head turned just enough so that Asmo could see him smile, “Showing off eh? That’s my little brother. Just make sure you don’t make your little Romeo jealous.” 

Oh it took so much for Asmo to keep himself from bursting into laughter. If only he knew. Honestly he knew Solomon wouldn’t be jealous if he brought him along. If he was Asmo would be a little concerned. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much.”

Mammon nodded and left Asmo to his work. Asmo unlocked his phone and started scrolling through the photos on his phone, looking for inspiration. Then he stopped. It was the picture he and Solomon took together with the cupcakes. Solomon’s head was rested on his shoulder, eyes alive, his smile laid naturally on his face, and he was just so relaxed. He started feeling warm once more just looking at the photo. They looked so perfect together, so natural. That was it. Maybe he shouldn’t do it, but he was going to base his newest design off of the two of them. Solomon was his missing piece, Solomon completed him. He’d kept his feelings locked away for so long, a secret to the world, but now they were coming into full bloom. He could make the outfits compliment each other. The first the more reserved and locked away feelings, and the second more extravagant and full. 

He kept the photo up on his phone as he went to work, and every now and again, he found himself becoming lost in the photo once more. He’d have to post it later, and maybe he’d get it framed.

********

Asmo was proud of himself.

Trully, he’d outdone himself.

_ Damn Solomon looked hot _ .

Well not that he didn’t normally. He had things about him that made him attractive. His looks. His _brilliant_ mind. His personality. But right now, all of his features popped. Asmo had accented his eyes and given them a smokier look, the jacket outlined his chest, and his hips… Had his butt always been that cute? Asmo had even gotten to pin his hair slicked back! Oh he belonged on the front of a magazine. He even had the right facial expressions for it. And he was wearing the clothes Asmo designed. _He liked the clothes Asmo designed._ He loved that Asmo was passionate about it… Honestly, Solomon was just as passionate about what he loved as Asmo was. That made them an even more perfect fit for each other. Not that he thought about it…. Everything Solomon wrote about Asmo, every trait he pointed out, those were things that Asmo loved in Solomon too. 

He adored him, he admired him, he wanted to be so much closer than what they were. He was beautiful and wonderful. He wanted to hold him close and never let him go. Asmo knew that he would do anything for Solomon and all he had to do was ask. 

Asmo knew he was attracted to Solomon, he’d always known, but now that he wasn’t repressing that attraction he was realizing just how strong it was. 

It took the professor nodding and commenting about Asmo’s design to bring him back into reality. He’d been daydreaming more and more about Solomon lately, and he’d been sneaking into his dreams more than he used to. Whenever he read his letters he could hear Solomon’s voice and feel his words. There wasn’t a moment that went by that he didn’t feel like he was walking on a cloud. How much better would it be when they were officially together?

“So, how did I do?” Solomon asked as they sat tucked away in the corner of one of the halls after class. 

Asmo smiled and snuggled back into the plush chair, “Perfect as always dear. You never need to ask.” 

“Honestly I thought I might be watching you model today,” Solomon motioned towards him, “You got more done up than usual today.”

_ Oh he noticed _ . That little fact made Asmo absolutely giddy, he had to cross his legs just to stop himself from bouncing. He was acting like a high schooler all over again, and Solomon was the one making him this way. “Oh this?” he asked, trying to come off as nonchalant as he could, “It’s nothing, buuut if you really like it, you should see what I plan on wearing Friday night.”

Solomon’s eyebrow raised and he cocked his head ever so slightly. He had his interest now. Maybe Solomon really did pay attention to more than Asmo thought.

“Oh? And why is that?” he asked. 

Asmo leaned forward, elbows on his knees, so he could look directly into Solomon’s eyes. There was such a thing as subtle flirting, and Asmo liked to think he was good at it. Sure he was normally a touchy person with people he liked, but he was also exceptionally good at expressing himself through body language. He always beat his brothers at charades and communicated what he wanted to his partners without ever needing to utter a word. It was an incredibly useful skill. For extra measure, he lowered his eyelids and looked up at Solomon through his lashes.

“Mammon invited me to one of the parties he attends, and he said I could bring a plus one,” he said, “Would you come with me? Please? It’s been a while since we’ve gone out together.”

Solomon smiled at him and Asmo swore he saw his hand twitch, stopping himself from reaching up and touching Asmo. Or at least that’s what he thought. He’d let Solomon touch him. He wanted Solomon to touch him. It felt natural that Solomon should touch him. 

“Well, since I got some work done last night, I’d say I’m pretty free.”   
  


“Great!” Asmo bounced up and clapped his hands together, “Oh and I absolutely need you to wear my design.”

Now Solomon seemed a little taken aback. His eyes widened and his eyebrows furrowed, “Asmodeus, are you sure you want me to wear this to a party? You worked so hard on it… I wouldn’t want something to happen to it…”

Asmo waved him off, with a smile, “Oh  _ hush _ . Yes I’m sure! I made it with your measurements in mind, and you look absolutely  _ divine. _ I’ll just have Mammon help me take some photos of you in it before we go for my portfolio.” He reached out and tapped Solomon’s nose playfully, “Plus, there’s no better way to show off to some head honchos and their underlings than to have my absolute best friend in the entire world, who also makes a wonderful model, wearing one of my looks. That and I’ll have some new designs that I can hopefully have you wear.”

Solomon still seemed a bit unsure. He looked down at the sleeve and carefully ran his hand over the fabric. “If you’re sure,” he said softly, fingers purposefully gripping at the fabric, “I just don’t want to ruin your hard work-”

“Solomon, I can promise you, I would be so  _ incredibly  _ happy to see you wear my designs in public.”

He still seemed to be mulling it over, debating whether he wanted to risk letting something happen to Asmo’s work. Then he gave in, a sigh leaving his lips, “It would really make you happy to see me wear it?”

Asmo nodded fervently, “I’m positive it would make me beyond happy!”

“Then I’ll wear it.”

Arms were thrown around Solomon before he had the chance to move. Asmo never really cared where he was, Solomon deserved his affections, he deserved everything Asmo had. Asmo would give Solomon everything he had. “Oh you are the best! Meet me at four on Friday. I’m sure Mammon will drive.”

“Then it’s a date.”

If Asmo hadn’t hidden his face in that moment, Solomon would have seen him blush.  _ A date _ . Sure, it was a figure of speech… But that didn’t stop the words from swirling around Asmo’s mind. 

_ Then it’s a date. _

_ Solomon said it was a  _ **_date_ ** _. _

Whether he meant a date date or not didn’t matter. That same beautiful feeling started to bloom in Asmo’s chest once more.


	8. Wishing on a Star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I finally made a writing blog! If you'd like to send me requests, talk to me, or just scream at me you can find me on @ruewrites on Tumblr! Like always thank you all so much for the support so far! It all means so much to me, I hope you enjoy! (Also slight warning, there are mentions of nausea at the end of this chapter, just in case.)
> 
> Updates happen on Fridays US eastern time.

How to look professional but sexy at the same time… While yes it was a party, Asmo knew there could potentially be people there that Asmo wanted to impress, and of course he wanted Solomon’s attention. Maybe he was overthinking it, it was entirely possible that he was overthinking everything, but he just wanted to look good. He really wanted to look good. 

Why the hell did he have so many clothes?

Well, he knew why, but still. Multiple outfit options were splayed out on his bed, every now and again he would swap bottoms and tops, accessories and shoes… He couldn’t even think of makeup yet until he had his outfit together perfectly. Would it be too tacky if he tried to match the design he made for Solomon? Probably… He needed to figure out his own thing. Pink had always been a good color on him, so he could start there. 

While normally he would love shorts, he didn’t want to be too cold. Sure it could be a tactic to get Solomon to cuddle up against him for warmth, but he didn’t want to be uncomfortable all night. Unfortunately he also couldn’t be able to snuggle up against Solomon all night either.

Alright. That narrowed down some of his options. Now he could get rid of tops that didn’t match. He supposed he could show a little skin. Maybe high waisted pants and a crop top? Yes he wanted to attract Solomon’s eye, and  _ maybe  _ he was basing his outfit off of things he’d noticed had drawn his eyes in the past. Whether it be on mannequins in stores or said in passing. But he was also doing it to hopefully strike up conversation with future employers or business partners.

But his skin, showing that off was for Solomon. Other people could look if they wanted to, in fact, he would encourage people to look at his bare arms, or the part of his stomach that his top was too short to reach, or how the mesh above his chest made his collar bones visible. They could even look at other parts of him like how his pants hugged his legs ever so perfectly, how his heels would make his back arch slightly, or how his makeup made all of his most wonderful features stand out that much more.

They could admire him, but it wasn’t for them. He was locked in on Solomon.

_ Then it’s a date. _

A date…

He said it was a date, and this was for him. He would take a jacket, but only for if he got cold. While it would be absolutely romantic for Solomon to give him one of his sweaters or jackets, he didn’t want to ruin his design.

Asmo had just finished painting his nails, when his phone buzzed, alerting him to Solomon’s presence downstairs.

“ _ Oh _ .” Solomon’s voice was quiet. He looked a bit surprised, and Asmo swore he saw his eyes do a quick once over his body.  _ Good _ . So far so good. 

“You look really nice.”

Asmo couldn’t help the smile that curled up on his lips. “Oh? Even nicer than earlier at school today?” he asked, walking around Solomon, pretending that he was inspecting the outfit. He was more than satisfied with the way Solomon’s head slowly followed his movements. Perhaps Asmo was intentionally putting a little more swing in his hips, perhaps…

“I would dare to say yes,” Solomon said, eyes quickly flicking over him once more, “You, really took your time to… to….”

The sentence tapered off as Asmo stepped closer, their eyes locked together. Asmo couldn’t help but wonder if he should try to kiss him. His heart was pounding against his chest as he inched closer. Solomon was frozen in place and Asmo couldn’t help but wonder how lost he was in his eyes. Solomon’s eyes looked even prettier in this moment. They were dark, mysterious, endless, just like the night sky. Asmo swore he found himself searching for shooting stars. But what do you wish for when all you’ve ever wanted is standing right in front of you?

“Oi, you still need pictures for yer portfolio or nah?”

Perhaps you wish for people to stop interrupting important moments in your life. That would be oh so incredibly nice.

Solomon straightened himself as his eyes snapped towards Mammon. He cleared his throat and nodded in an attempt to gather some of his lost composure off of the floor. “Yes, of course. I wouldn’t want your hard work to go to waste,” he smiled, looking down at Asmo once more, “Where would you like to take them?”

The nice thing about the Morningstar estate was that it was huge. A large garden sat behind the house with stone benches and angels and other decor scattered throughout the various exotic plants that grew there. Asmo tightened his jacket around himself with one hand while holding Mammon’s camera in the other. Mammon was showing Solomon some of the best ways to position himself. The look on Solomon’s face was almost comical. The glances he would steal towards Asmo screamed ‘help me’ and all Asmo could do was giggle and shrug in response. Perhaps it was good that Solomon was going to be a professor rather than going into the fashion industry. He looked the part, but being positioned didn’t seem to be one of his strong suits, especially not when Mammon was going over all of his tips a mile a minute. He looked a little awkward, but they could make it work. He still looked hot.

“Alright, just remember what we talked about,” Mammon called, to which Solomon gave him a rather unsure thumbs up. “Camera.” 

Honestly Asmo was happy to return the camera to his brother, even if he had asked for it rather rudely. Yes, he was a little cold for now, but having Solomon’s eyes on him would make it so incredibly worth it.

“I hope you’re ready after these,” Mammon said, snapping pictures in quick succession, “After this set I’ll let ya look at them to see which ones you like, yer gonna get ‘em developed yerself, and then we’re gonna pregame.”

“Aren’t you  _ driving _ ?” Asmo asked, crossing his arms. Honestly, he couldn’t say he wasn’t surprised.

Mammon huffed, turning to look at Asmo, “Well duh, well drive there first and  _ then  _ pregame.”

“Mammon, brother dearest, that is far from the point.”

Asmo wasn’t about to let Mammon’s stupidity ruin his fun night. Besides, if worse came to worse, he’d call Simeon to come and get them. Problem solved. Maybe… Maybe he’d be able to go home with Solomon. Oh he couldn’t only imagine what it would feel like falling asleep in his arms! But he had to get him to confess first. He just  _ had  _ to. This party would be one of his best options. 

It was amazing what a little alcohol could do. It would relax both of them, lower their inhibitions, bring them down to their most basic desires. Based on what Solomon had written in his letters, Asmo had know doubt that confessing would be one of the things that he wanted to do the most. This party would make him confess. This party  _ had  _ to make him confess.

******

Asmo wasn’t sure if this place was nice or a while in the wall. It was too dark to tell. The only lights surrounding them were bright, multicolored, and flashing. Wisps of smoke trailed across the floor from hidden spoke machines and they were surrounded by people laughing and drinking. Was that a mini bar in the corner? 

Well, this was certainly a lot nicer than any college party he’d been to. Still crowded, but nice. He was a little dizzy from drinking in Mammon’s car, and every now and again he’d bump into Solomon’s side. He just had to keep his balance and he’d be fine. Asmo wasn’t  _ drunk _ , but he was feeling a pretty pleasant buzz coursing through him.

Mammon had already disappeared into the crowd, most likely to find some of his work friends. He had been wearing a design from his employer when they left the house… Honestly, Asmo was starting to think this was less of a work thing, and more of a ‘it’s time for all of us to show off and be a little full of ourselves’ thing. Which Asmo had no problem with at all.

“Solomoooon!” he giggled in a sing-song voice, wrapping his arms around Solomon’s arm, “Let’s go find a place to take a picture. I wanna post a real nice one on my page.” He felt Solomon’s hand brush against his exposed waist, just for a moment. They weren’t soft, but they weren’t too rough either. It was a happy medium that sent a nice sensation along his smooth skin. They were also cold,  _ really  _ cold. But Asmo didn’t mind, the goosebumps would disappear eventually. He’d let himself freeze over if it meant that Solomon would touch him first. If Solomon would kiss him...If Solomon would whisper those three magic words.

He couldn’t see Solomon’s lips in the dark, and he struggled hearing him above the thumping of the bass, but he knew that Solomon followed after him without resistance.

As they pushed through the crowds looking for proper lighting, Asmo couldn’t help but notice people hiding in the corners and couches. People curled up together, people kissing, people making out, people whispering to each other, people drinking together… They were almost entirely shadows, hidden from the light, their forms only illuminated every now and again by a strike of green, or blue, or red. Asmo wanted to be in the places of those people. He knew how good it felt. He  _ knew  _ the high it could bring. He’d experienced it before yes, but now he wanted to experience it with Solomon. He knew it would feel good. He knew they’d enjoy themselves. Even just cuddling in Solomon’s arms, tucked away from the rest of the crowd, and hearing Solomon recite his letters to him softly in the dark. 

A crack of light broke through onto the floor in gentle streams, gently caressing the smoke. And Asmo had no hesitation when it came to pushing the door open into a small bathroom. There was an ornate mirror, lined in gold and resting above a marble sink where Asmo could see their reflections perfectly. They made such a cute couple, they really did. The music was a little more muted from inside the small bathroom, and Asmo could finally hear himself think, but more importantly he could finally hear Solomon.

“I think the lighting in here will do, what do you think?” he asked, turning around ever so slightly to look at Solomon. He shrugged his jacket off before Solomon could even respond and tied it around his hips. Maybe it wasn’t the best choice, but he certainly didn’t want to leave it on the floor. However, seeing Solomon watch his movements in the mirror made it all worth it. 

“Yeah- Yeah. I think this’ll work,” he said. 

Asmo grinned and pushed himself back into Solomon and held his phone up. He swore he felt him shudder ever so slightly. “What do you think of this angle?” he asked, leaning more into Solomon’s shoulder so that their faces were inches apart. Asmo knew what he was doing. All Solomon had to do was wrap his hands around his hips, all he had to do was hold him close, all he had to do-

There was a quick knock at the door that made them jump. “Just a second!” Solomon called, “Alright, I think we look good.” 

Asmo nodded, a little annoyed at the interruption, but smiled for the picture nonetheless. It was cute, but Solomon still wished he could have seen what might have happened… Ah well. “Ready to head to the bar?”

*****

Asmo had to stop himself from giggling as he watched Solomon gawk at the fluorescent drink in front of him. It was a bright vibrant blue color that faded into an obnoxious yellow with a cherry on top and something circling the rim. It was cute, almost like when they were kids and Solomon would become enraptured in something. In some instances, he still had a boyish charm about him especially when you got him on about something he liked. 

He was currently sipping on some pink nightmare with a strawberry slipped onto the side. They were all fruity and burned just right as it slipped down his throat. “Are you going to drink it?” he asked, leaning against the bar counter.

“Yeah… Yeah it’s just so.. so  _ bright _ ,” he frowned, squinting his eyes at the drink, “How do they make it so bright? Is it like… like drinking a glow stick?”

Both of them had already had a few drinks at this point, indiscriminately taking shot after short of whatever looked best. Asmo was definitely sure he was a little past tipsy now, but Solomon hit the lottery when it came to the drinks with the highest alcohol content. The man had an aesthetic and it came with a price.

“I don’t mind splitting it if you-”

“Shhhhh _ hhhh _ ,” Solomon’s finger was on his lips and he leaned forward a bit. For a moment Asmo was scared that he was going to fall off the stool if he leaned any closer. He wanted Solomon to make a move on him, but he didn’t want to make a trip to the ER….

“I-I can drink it,” Solomon said, then he stopped, fingers running over Asmo’s lips for a moment, “They’re so  _ soft _ . How do you get them so soft?” 

Asmo stuttered a bit. Yes he wanted Solomon to make a move, but it didn’t stop his heartbeat from becoming irregular. After all, Solomon was a  _ wonderful  _ man, and his fingers were moving back and forth over his lips. “I uh.. Chapstick…”

Incredibly expensive chapstick.

“You know,” Asmo continued, trying to regain some of his composure, “It’s cherry flavored, I’ve been told it’s really good.”  _ Do you want a taste _ ?

He watched Solomon focus in on his lips, and he held his breath. Maybe he was actually thinking about doing it. Maybe Solomon would kiss him and confess right here. Asmo was getting ready to close his eyes, lashes fluttering against his cheeks. He let Solomon’s finger part his lips ever so slightly and leaned forward. Then he heard the rocking of the stool and a stumble. 

“Solomon!” he caught the man just in time before he fell off the bar stool. Alright… Maybe Solomon had had a little more than he thought. Solomon blinked as if in a daze before looking up at Asmo. 

“Hey Asmodeus, why is your skin so smooth? And how did the sunset get into your eyes?” Solomon didn’t make any move to touch him again, but he did shoot some finger guns Asmo’s way.

Oh… Oh that was bad… That was really bad. But bad in a cute way.

“Wait, is it sunset or sunrise? …. Asmodeus do you know? I can’t remember which one is brighter… Or peaches… They could also be peaches…. Tangerines?”

Now it was time to stop. The sunset thing was cute, but this…? This was drunken rambling.

“Solomon, dear, why don’t we bring your drink over to a couch or something? That way you can sit better,” Asmo suggested, taking the blue, glowing concoction in one hand, his own in the other. The real challenge came with trying not to spill anything whenever Solomon bumped into him. It was so packed with people, the last thing he needed to do was ruin one of these expensive outfits. He couldn’t help but feel anxious about it until they found an available couch. After all, ruining another designer’s masterpiece could ruin his career before it even started.

“Why don’t we sit here?” he asked, sitting the drinks down and patting the spot next to him. He jumped a bit as Solomon plopped down onto the red felt beneath them. He plucked his drink from the table in front of them and brought it to his lips. Asmo could help admire him. Oh how lucky was that glass, what Asmo wouldn’t give to have those lips on him.

“You want the cherry?” Solomon asked, plucking it from the inside of his glass. Asmo didn’t even get to respond before the smooth, plump, red fruit was being pressed against his lips. It was cold, just like Solomon’s hands. “You said your chapstick was cherry.” 

He pushed a little further. 

Oh drunk Solomon was certainly a little more forward. Asmo nodded before opening his mouth just enough to eat the cherry. The entire time, Solomon watched him with the goofiest grin Asmo had ever seen. They normally let loose with each other but this was more flirtatious.

“Didn’t you want it?” Asmo asked 

Solomn’s smile widened and he chuckled slightly, “You said your chapstick was cherry.”

_ Oh _ . That was flirtatious…Or it could just be Solomon’s drunken ramblings…  _ Or it could be hinting to a deeper desire. _

He was so obsessed with Asmo’s cherry chapstick, with Asmo’s lips….

Their fingertips were inches apart. They were already close together. They had to be in order to hear each other over the loud music. Asmo wanted to move closer. There was nothing more that he wanted in this moment than Solomon to touch him and tell him how much he loved him. He’d never known a stronger desire in his entire life. He’d never wished harder than he had for Solomon.

_ Kiss me _ .

That’s what he wanted to say. He wanted nothing more than that. Solomon wouldn’t-  _ didn’t  _ have to ask. Asmo would let Solomon taste the cherries on his lips. He thought back once more to the people in the shadows, how they were intertwined and so caught up in only each other.  _ That could be them _ . He could feel his hands on the back of Solomon’s neck, right above his tattoos, playing with the ends of his silver hair. He didn’t care if it wrinkled the suit he made,  _ damn his design _ , Solomon was so much better. Solomon was all he ever wished for in this life with his starry eyes and charm. Asmodeus had always thought he was the charming and charismatic one in this relationship, and most of the time he was, but Solomon still managed to make his heart skip a beat. His body was heating up and he couldn’t tell whether it was the alcohol or Solomon himself. 

Solomon was quick and witty.  _ And Asmo  _ **_loved_ ** _ him. _ Asmo was honestly starting to wonder if his magic stemmed further than simple tricks of the hand. What sorcery had he cast upon him to make him feel this strongly?

“Excuse me,” a soft voice barely managed to pop up above the music. It took Asmo a while to register. He turned his head to find a girl standing before them. She was pretty. Perhaps one of the models? She was staring at Solomon.  _ His Solomon _ . 

Asmo could feel his blood start to boil. 

Who said she could look at him the way she was? Yes he was attractive but-

...

But  _ what _ ? What was the but? What was supposed to follow it?

The more Asmo stared he came to a realization that there was a group watching from a distance. They were giggling, turning around and whispering to each other and watching intently. Asmo’s fists balled, he wasn’t stupid, he knew what this was about.

“I- um-” she couldn’t seem to find her words, and Asmo’s annoyance spiked.

“ _ Yes _ ?” he snapped, trying his hardest to keep the sugary sweet tone to his voice and failing miserably. He couldn’t help it. He worked so  _ hard  _ for Solomon. He’d waited so long. Asmo finally accepted how he felt towards his long time friend. He couldn’t lose him. He couldn’t-

“I’m sorry, are you two…  _ together _ ?” 

Asmo stopped himself. A ‘yes’ lingering on the tip of his tongue.

_ Then it’s a date. _

_ It’s a date. _

_ A date…. _

That’s what Solomon had said. He slowly turned to look at Solomon who was already staring at him intently. His head was cocked to the side and his brows were furrowed. Suddenly Asmo felt chilled to his very core, and his composure dropped ever so slightly. 

_ A date _ .

Wouldn’t Solomon say something himself if that’s what he’d really meant? If it wasn’t him just using a figure of speech?

“I...Well…” he couldn’t find his words.

The woman’s face lit up once more and her focus back to Solomon, “Oh! Well, do you mind a quick dance? Just one?”

Asmo couldn’t tell Solomon what to do. He realized this. 

“Well…”

“Please?”

Solomon looked at Asmo for a moment. He still seemed a little off, but it looked like he was  _ waiting _ for Asmo. Asmo couldn’t find his words.

“Just one. It’s just one dance.”

Asmo swore Solomon had said something similar to him once during their senior prom when he’d been dumped. Asmo’s current favorite song had come on, he’d looked at Solomon with the most pleading eyes (similar to the girl before them now). Solomon had said yes. They’d been close together, laughing and swapping jokes and words back and forth. They had been so natural together, just being themselves. He’d always been comfortable around Solomon, and as much as Asmo had wanted too, he hadn’t put his head on his chest.

Solomon wasn’t one to say no to such a simple request, and it looked like nothing much has changed since. Well… He could say no. He’d done it before…. But-

He watched her grab his arm and pull him into the crowd. Asmo didn’t even realize he was following. He didn’t feel like he was inside himself. He was going through movements. Neither of them had said anything… Why should they? They hadn’t confirmed anything… But Asmo certainly hadn’t denied anything… Solomon hadn’t confirmed anything… Was this all just their normal banter?

It couldn’t be…

_ It just couldn't be.  _ It wouldn’t be fair.

It was just like  _ her  _ all over again. Solomon’s first girlfriend. The one that had shattered Asmo the first time. She was somewhere deep inside that woman, and she was taking Solomon from him all over again….

_ Or did Solomon even belong to him in the first place _ ? 

He tried to hold on to his anger, to his  _ jealousy _ , as he watched the two of them, from Solomon’s awkward drunken stupor to the girl’s tipsy giggling. That grip loosened with every passing moment and Asmo hated it. It was easier to be angry than vulnerable, and he was terrified of being vulnerable here, being vulnerable now. Everyone else in the room disappeared. Honey-comb eyes were fixed on the pair in the spotlight.

_ That could have been him _ .

_ That  _ **_should_ ** _ have been him. _

Time seemed to stop around him as the girl leaned ever closer to Solomon’s face, and then Asmo had to rip his eyes away. The pounding of the bass once again flooded his system and the room suddenly felt too claustrophobic. There was too much. It was all too much. He was overwhelmed. He needed to get away. 

Asmo tried to hide his face as he shoved his way through people this time. He didn’t care about the warpath he could potentially leave in his wake.

Consequences be damned right?

The soft light from the bathroom drew him in away from the crowd, away from his embarrassment, away from Solomon. He was starting to regret the alcohol, he could feel it weighing heaving in the pit of his stomach.

The noise that left him was inhuman. It was raw. It was uncontrollable.

Pain bloomed into his knuckle as he bit down, hard, but it was nothing compared to the petals slowly being ripped off one at a time deep in his chest.

Shakily he paced his small prison. 

_ He was an adult.  _

_ He could take care of himself no matter what happened. _

_ He was more than capable. _

_ He was….he was. _

A tear dropped onto the tiled floor beneath him. Then another, and another, and another. They wouldn’t stop. No matter how many times he wiped them away, they kept coming down, faster and bigger than before. 

This wasn’t one of the possibilities he’d prepared himself for in things that could happen. It was his own fault. He’d been smart before, keeping everything locked deep in the back of his mind where they belonged. They’d been unacknowledged and had no way to gnaw at him. But then he’d let those  _ stupid  _ letters open him up, just a little bit, and he’d pushed the door open then rest of the way. There was no taking it back now. That was the real reason he’d never said anything to Solomon.  _ He’d been afraid _ . Afraid of being wrong, and he’d been right. He’d wanted Solomon to confess first to show him that there was nothing to be afraid of. 

He’d wished for and dreamed of Solomon for years because he was something that Asmo couldn’t have. Solomon was funny, and witty, and handsome, and talented, and smart. He made Asmo laugh and feel more wonderful than anyone else could make him feel. 

Asmo couldn’t have that. Asmo didn’t deserve that. He was stupid that he ever thought otherwise. 

_ A date _ .

Asmo had invented this fairytale romance in his head, put words into Solomon’s mouth and thoughts behind his actions, and now he was paying the price.

Solomon didn’t think of him like that. He’d  _ never  _ thought of Asmo like that, and he never would. Asmo had been stupid to think otherwise. Yet he’d jumped anyways. It’s because he’d do anything for Solomon, even now he’d do anything for him. He’d jump again and all Solomon had to do was say the word. Solomon had him under his spell, and even though it sent a searing, burning pain though him, Asmo wasn’t sure he wanted to be let go. He couldn’t forget the way Solomon’s touch felt. Hands running through his hair… Fingers touching his lips….

The alcohol in his stomach was stirring. He really regretted the alcohol, it was under a long list of regrets that Asmo had within this moment. It had to stay down. He needed to keep control of one thing about himself right now.  _ Something,  _ **_anything_ ** _ would do. _ Everything was shattering around him, he just needed to keep something,  _ anything  _ to keep his sanity, to keep him from completely breaking down.

Then he made the mistake of looking at himself in the mirror. His makeup was completely ruined, smudged and dripping down his face. His pretty eyes were completely bloodshot. His face overall was red and blotchy. Strawberry blonde locks, normally perfectly in place, were frizzed and scattered in every direction…. Had… Had he really ripped at his hair? Fat tears still continued to roll down his face.

Knees buckled as Asmo fell back onto the cold tiled floor.

His fingers buried into his hair and his face in his lap, and he let out a guttural cry. He was alone, he was broken, and he wasn’t sure if his sobbing would ever stop. 

He took it back. This was nothing compared to the first time.  _ It hurt so much more. _

Asmo had never been more grateful for the loud bass pounding through the speakers outside as it drowned out his sorrow.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. 
> 
> ....
> 
> Sorry about that.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dj1P-5Ey4dU  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPUg7n8-M6o
> 
> (Sorry these were playing through my head...)
> 
> Anyways! Love you all! Updates come out on Fridays!


	9. Ghosts of the Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just in case, there may be a slight tw for some verbal abuse with Asmo's 4th partner. So just in case you may want to skip over that bit.
> 
> Thank you all so much for everything so far! I really mean it. I know I say this at the beginning update but ahhhh you're all so sweet and I'm so happy that you're enjoying the story so far. Like I feel like I can't thank you enough and yes I am going to keep saying that until this is done (and maybe even after). Everything you guys do and leave makes me feel so wonderful. (Sorry for hurting you with the last bit, I love you all <3)
> 
> If you want to request something of me on tumblr or even if you just want to chit chat, you can find me on @ruewrites. This was my last week of classes (now I just have to get a few last assignments in) so I hope I can get some requests done in between writing some chapters!
> 
> WBT updates every Friday US eastern time.

“Oh…. You’re gonna be hanging out with _ him _ .”

Asmo frowned, switched hands in order to hold his phone. He’d noticed that she had some tensions with Solomon, but surely they’d fade over time. Clearly he was wrong. “Yes, I am going to hang out with Solomon. Why wouldn’t I? He’s my best friend,” he responded, trying to keep any annoyance out of his voice. 

He heard something slam on the other side of the receiver. Oh he  _ hated  _ fighting. 

“Well maybe I don’t like him.”

“And why not?” Asmo felt his voice raise. If there was one thing he would never give up, it was his best friend. Solomon and he had known each other for so long, he wasn’t going to drop him out of the blue because some person he was dating randomly decided that they didn’t like him. That was  _ ridiculous.  _ Anyone who thought he was going to end his friendship with Slomon clearly shouldn’t be dating him. “Solomon’s never done anything to you!”

A huff. “You hang out with him so much! What’s so special about  _ him _ ? Why do you always spend so much time together?” she asked, voice rising from the other end of the speaker, “You act like he’s  _ so _ special! Solomon this and Solomon that, I’ve heard so many Solomon stories! I already have to see him at school everyday, you don’t have to remind me every second how close you are! It’s not like you need him.”

“Well then maybe we just shouldn’t be together if you can’t stand Solomon that much, because he’s not going anywhere!”

Silence.

Asmo didn’t want to fight, especially not over the phone. Maybe it wasn’t the most mature way to handle it then, but Asmo’s relationship with Solomon was one of the most important things to him, and he wasn’t about to let him out of his life. Did he want to break up over the phone? No. But this wasn’t the first conversation that they’d had about this. He also saw the way she treated Solomon during school and when they tried to hang out. Asmo tried to shut it down whenever he saw it, but now he was done. 

“Fine. Go suck his dick for all I care, you’re such a  _ bitch _ .”

Asmo decided then and there that he’d make it a ground rule then and there that any slight against Solomon was a slight against him. Solomon was his friend, his  _ best _ friend, and he certainly wasn’t going to ditch him for some dumb relationship.

*****

Asmo had just come downstairs and immediately came down to snuggle against his then boyfriend at the time on the couch. He’d spent the night, one of the  _ first  _ times he’d gotten to spend the night at this boyfriend’s house. He thought he looked cute. He really did. He’d left his bedhead the way it was, shrugged on one of his boyfriend’s sweaters, and pulled up his shorts. 

He thought he looked cute.

“You not feelin well or somethin?” he’d asked, almost as soon as he saw Asmo. He stopped, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Not feeling well? Why wouldn’t he be feeling well? He brought his hands back in towards himself and tilted his head.

Maybe… Maybe he just misunderstood. “What?”

“Are you sick?” his boyfriend repeated, “You’re not all dressed up like you usually are... Like, you didn’t get all dolled up or anything.”

Asmo couldn’t help but stutter out a response, “I- ah… No. No I’m not sick.”

_ I thought I looked cute _ ….

The disappointment in his eyes hit Asmo hard. “Oh.”

Asmo stood there in awkward silence for a moment, even after his boyfriend already turned away from him. He tried to touch him, but he kept pulling away. Even after Asmo was clearly upset, he didn’t seem to care. Normally he’d let Asmo snuggle and hang on to him… But normally he was dolled up and pretty…. Asmo couldn’t shake off the disappointment in his eyes… He’d underperformed, and Asmo couldn’t help but feel like he was being punished. He couldn’t cry, crying would only make it worse. He was already unhappy with him and he couldn’t make it up to him. He didn’t even want to look at him…

Asmo never underdressed ever again after that…

******

Asmo was walking back home, alone, in the dark. Every now and again a street lamp would flicker above him.

She promised him it’d be fun… But honestly? Asmo had just had one of the worst nights of his life. That party had been the worst. No one talked to him. No one acknowledged him unless she brought him up. He was only there to look pretty. 

It wasn’t the first time this girlfriend had done this either. 

The first time he met any one in her life, she always pointed out his looks. Of course Asmo didn’t mind, he knew he was attractive, but after a while it seemed like that was the only things she seemed to know about him. She wasn’t really concerned with what he liked or what he had to say. Asmo’s voice was always glossed over. 

This had been the nail in the coffin for him. The confirmation he needed. 

She was using him for arm candy and Asmo wasn’t happy about it. Even though he saw this coming, the realization still made him sick. Her friends were surrounding her and Asmo was on the outside of it all. Completely and utterly alone. They didn’t seem to really care about anything he said or did. His job was to stand there and look pretty. Maybe the sickness in his stomach was from the alcohol, but he didn’t think that was the case. 

Asmo was starting to wonder if any of his partners cared about what he had to say… Or was his job simply to be appealing to them?

Perhaps they didn’t mean it, perhaps they hadn’t even realized that they were doing it, or maybe they did. Maybe people only liked Asmo for his looks, maybe they wouldn’t talk to him if he didn’t look pretty. They didn’t care about his interests or what he had to say. So be it. He noticed the way people’s eyes glazed over when he started talking about things he enjoyed. He knew they didn’t pay attention.

******

“Can you not drop it?” he growled. Asmo should have walked away. He really should have. Yet here he was, standing and confronting his boyfriend. They really shouldn’t be fighting in his boyfriend’s dorm like this and yet-

“Look, I’m not the one who brought all this shit up. It’s not my fault Mommy and Daddy abandoned you and your brothers because you’re trash. If you weren’t they would have taken you with them. You’re not little Mr. Perfect. You’re  _ garbage _ ,” he snarled. Asmo knew he was being mean, he knew he shouldn’t give into his prodding, he knew he should be the bigger person…

He couldn’t be the bigger person. Not now. 

“Oh  _ fuck off _ . If I’m so imperfect why are you still with me?” he snapped back. Asmo knew he would feel bad later after he cooled off back home. He knew he would feel bad firstly because he probably woke some of the neighbors and secondly because he knew the text messages that would hit him the next morning. 

His boyfriend had scoffed and turned away, “You’re kidding right?”

“Am I kidding about what?”

“Blondes really are as dumb as they say, aren’t they?” 

Asmo saw the glint in his eyes. He knew that glint, and he hated it. He steeled himself in an attempt to prepare himself for whatever was going to come out of his mouth. 

He was never really prepared.

They were nearly touching, and Asmo’s hands were balled up into tight fists.

“All anyone will ever want to do is fuck you. That’s all you’re good for. Anyone who says otherwise is lying through their teeth. At least I’m honest with you Sweetheart, the first place my eyes went were down,” his words were venom that slowly filled Asmo. This wasn’t something new by any stretch of the mean. At this point, the good moments didn’t even compare to the claw wounds under his skin or the poison in his heart.

“Oh  _ screw off _ ,” he growled, hating the way his voice wavered. Asmo knew his own insecurities well enough. He didn’t need his soon to be ex-boyfriend to remind him about them.

“You never let anyone see you before you’ve done your morning routine, you never wear laid back clothing, hell even your  _ pajamas  _ are some real fancy shit!” his boyfriend had laughed, “You’re lucky you’re pretty, it almost makes up for all the other things about you! Especially when it comes to all of those insecurities of yours!”

Asmo pushed past him to the door. He couldn’t stand there and take this any more.

“I’m the best you’re  _ ever _ gonna get babe! Do you honestly think you’re gonna get better than this?” was the last thing Asmo heard through the slammed door. 

Asmo hated breaking up over the phone, but breaking up over text felt more than appropriate in this situation. He even blocked his number on his way back home with hot tears in his eyes.

Asmo didn’t know what he deserved, honestly he didn’t think he deserved some amazing fairytale, but he knew it was better than this…. Not even previous partners had stooped that low…

He was going to take a break. Take time to get away from all of his exes, take time for himself. Who needed them? They all certainly hadn’t deserved him… They didn’t.

******

Asmo couldn’t help but remember all of those exes as he sat on the bathroom floor. He was in a spiral and he couldn’t pull himself out, and the only thing he could do was wait it out till it was all over. He’d been dumb to think he deserved someone as wonderful as Solomon. Sure he thought he deserved to be in something  _ decent _ , but Solomon? Solomon was too good to him, he was Asmo’s ideal version of a partner. Solomon had also known about all of Asmo’s past failed relationships. Why would he want to be involved with him like that?

Home sounded so nice right about now. He could curl up under his covers and lock out the rest of the world until he felt like himself again. But that also required him to go back out into the party, back out under the bright lights, back out to face his humiliation. He wanted nothing more than to go back in time and stop himself from opening his version of Pandora’s Box and releasing everything he felt for Solomon. Everything his subconscious had worked so tirelessly to suppress. 

If he could do that, all of the ghosts from his past, all of his mistakes, would stop haunting him in his little prison. 

A knock resounded from the other side of the door. They could wait. They could go somewhere else. He didn’t care. But Asmo needed his little prison, he needed to be locked away from the world, he needed a moment to drown in sorrow. They could leave without a second thought, Asmo couldn’t. But they didn’t leave, instead they just knocked again. Couldn’t Asmo just be alone with his sorrows in peace? Couldn’t he do so without being humiliated?

“Occupied,” he growled out, trying to get the message to whoever was on the other side to leave.

Unfortunately, family was never really good at leaving you alone.

And Asmo forgot to lock the door.

“Aw did someone drink too much? I can hold your hair back for-” Mammon’s jovial tone died as soon as he looked at Asmo. He probably had never sobered up faster in all of his life than in that moment. 

Asmo tensed and turned his face away, “Don’t look at me.  _ Leave Mammon _ .” 

The door clicked shut, the lock turned, and Mammon stepped closer. “Hey… Hey it’s alright,” Mammon’s voice was softer than Asmo had ever heard it before. He flinched as Mammon slowly brought his face out of his lap.

“It’s really not.”

“Wha-”

“ _ I’m not talking about it _ .”

More tears fell down his face. He just wanted it to stop, he wanted all of it to stop. He wanted his ghosts to stop tearing the petals out of his chest and to stop whispering in his mind. Those times were dead and gone, the least they could do was leave him alone instead of adding to his suffering.

Another choked sob escaped him, as Mammon pulled him to his feet and wrapped his arms around him. “Alright, you don’t have ta talk about it.”

Asmo didn’t try to pull away. He let his brother hold him like that for a while as he cried away on his shoulder, staining the designer jacket beneath him. Suddenly he was a child again, crying in Mammon’s arms because of something some bully said at his school. Mammon would hold him until he couldn’t cry anymore. It wasn’t until Mammon held him back a bit that Asmo started to wipe his eyes again. He hadn’t realized how blurry his eyes had become. The sound of running water filled his ears and then a wet paper towel pressed against his face. The cold compression felt soothing against his red, blotchy eyes. After a bit, Mammon switched to his other eye and Asmo’s sobs and choked cries slowly turned into soft sniffles. 

“There ya go, now let’s fix all that smeared makeup yeah? Can’t have my baby brother not lookin his best.”

Asmo couldn’t help but chuckle. Mammon cleared up his runny mascara and now spotty eyeliner. It was probably a blessing in disguise that the party outside was dark. Rough hands combed through his hair in an attempt to restyle it in some way.

It was times like this when Asmo remembered that Mammon wasn’t all that bad. He could be annoying and a pest, but when he felt like it he really could be a good older brother. 

Face cleaned up and sniffles slowly coming to a halt, Asmo was finally starting to feel better, but his stomach wouldn’t stop churning. He wanted to leave, his night was over. He didn’t want to dance with strangers or drink anymore. A safe haven was calling out to him, and he wanted nothing more than to return the call.

“Ready to head back out there? Have a little more fun?”

“Actually, can you call Simeon? You and Solomon can stay if you want, but I think I’m done.”

Calling any of his other brothers was out of the question. It might tip Lucifer off about where they were, and he couldn’t deal with his oldest brother’s lectures… Not tonight. He didn’t miss the flash of concern that crossed Mammon’s face. Asmo knew he’d never been one to turn down more partying before... But his mood had been completely destroyed. 

“I want to go.”

Asmo had never felt smaller as he crept back into the shadows. He slowly slid his jacket back on and kept his eyes cast down to the floor. 

“Asmodeus!” 

He flinched. Glancing up, only for a second, he saw Solomon’s form making his way over to him. He looked a little ruffled, but his eyes were filled with concern. Honestly, it looked like he sobered up quite a bit. He stumbled and his hands gripped at Asmo’s shoulders. Solomon’s touch burned, a painful reminder of everything Asmo couldn’t have.

“You were gone.”

“I got sick,” not entirely a lie, “I think I’m going to call it for tonight. Simeon won’t mind picking me up right?” Honestly Asmo thought he’d get sick again from the sweetness he was forcing into his voice. It wasn’t that he wanted to be cruel towards Solomon, looking at him just made him want to slam that little door in his heart even harder, to lock away his last few petals forever.

“Sick? Wait, let me call Simeon,it’s probably not a bad idea to call it a night.”

“Oh, no need to bother. I would hate to ruin your wonderful night of fun.”

“Asmodeus, any night spent with you is more than wonderful and fun,” Solomon’s words were too much, he was still drunk, he didn’t know what he was saying, “Besides, it would be unfair to make Simeon make more than one trip.”

He couldn’t talk him out of this. Why did Solomon have to be like this? Sensible, even when drunk.  _ Why _ ?

Why couldn’t Asmo just be by himself for a little longer? Sure he wasn’t bawling his eyes out any more, but that didn’t mean he was done processing or done dealing with the ache in his chest just yet.

Asmo didn’t register them heading outside. Didn’t register them making sure Mammon’s parked car would be okay where it was till morning. Didn’t register Simeon’s tired greeting when he pulled up. Didn’t register the trip over to Solomon’s apartment. 

What time was it?

Was it late night or early morning?

He didn’t know. All he knew was that he was cold and felt numb.

All he knew was that Mammon crashed onto the couch in the living room, a bit to Asmo’s annoyance. So was Asmo going to sleep on the floor? How  _ considerate _ .

He didn’t realize how close Simeon was behind him and jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. “Please try to be quiet if you could, Luke’s asleep, and it’s late,” Simeon’s voice was soft and soothing. He felt Simeon study him for a moment, hand never leaving his shoulder. And then, “Are you quite alright?”

Asmo was quiet for a moment before he offered a smile, “Oh it’s nothing, just a little too much to drink. It’ll wear off by morning.” 

Simeon stared at him for a moment and Asmo couldn’t help but squirm under his gaze. It felt like he was looking into his very being, like he knew Asmo was lying. Then he nodded and removed his hand from Asmo’s shoulder. “Alright. Sleep well Asmo,” he smiled, before offering Solomon a nod and disappearing back into the hall. Then it was just him and Solomon standing alone in the dark living room. The only noise that cracked their silence was the occasional creaking of the floor and Mammon’s soft snores. The rest of the world seemed to be silent.

Neither one of them seemed to know what to say.

It was Solomon who broke the silence between them, “You… You can stay in my room if you want.” He was still swaying a bit, eyes still a little hazy. 

“Well, I mean… It is your room...I wouldn’t want to intrude-”

“You don’t want to sleep on the floor right?” Solomon responded rather quickly, “Besides, you’ve done it before. Unless you want to wake up with back pain.”

Asmo didn’t even get the chance to respond before following Solomon back to his room. He hated the way his heart flipped a bit. Solomon wasn’t his. This was an act of hospitality and he knew that. They’d done this before.

“You said you wanted a sleepover right?” Solomon said, opening the door. He still stumbled every now and again, the alcohol from the still keeping its grip over him. Those big grey eyes still stared at him in the dark, and Asmo could feel a warmth start to consume him. It was stupid. All of this was stupid. He couldn’t get the girl from the party out of his head, yet his attraction to Solomon was undeniable…

Asmo undid the jacket from his waist and tried to take his shoes off. He felt tense sitting on Solomon’s bed. He’d never felt this tense before, especially not around Solomon. It took all of his effort to get his fingers to move. He honestly didn’t want to sleep in his crop top, but it seemed like his only option.

That is until a piece of fabric came flying at him. Asmo made a tiny noise before he looked at it. It was a dark blue sweatshirt, one of their university’s sweatshirts. He looked at Solomon who was trying to fold his now somewhat crinkled outfit to put it to the side. Only to slip into something that looked a little more comfortable (Asmo was pretty sure it was backwards). Asmo tried to ignore the way his own eyes traced over the tattoos on Solomon’s torso. He tried to ignore everything that ran through him. He was trying to keep his back pressed firmly against the door in his chest to keep it shut, but something else was fighting him.

It had never been this hard to drop feelings for one of his exes…

“I thought you might like something else, something more comfortable.”

“How gentlemanly of you,” Asmo chuckled, but it wasn’t his normal bell-like laugh Secret had written about so many times before.

But he did change out his crop top for Solomon’s sweatshirt.

It smelt like him. 

Of course it did. It was his sweatshirt. But it didn’t stop the way that smokey scent invaded his senses even more as he laid down on Solomon’s bed. He was drowning in the sheets that surrounded him and his lungs ached. It was a reminder of what he couldn’t have. He lost. The door he’d been trying to keep shut burst open, and everything he’d been trying to hold back burst forth. 

He felt Solomon plop down next to him. There was nothing graceful about it, he didn’t even pull the covers over himself. Asmo thought he heard him mumble something under his breath, and then nothing. Asmo laid there for a moment before getting up, he wanted to be sure Solomon was asleep.

He’d tell him he couldn’t sleep.

He’d tell him that he wanted to check on Mammon. 

He’d tell him he was afraid he’d get sick.

He’d come up with something.

Just as Asmo was about to leave the bed, he took a glance towards Solomon, and he stopped. He shouldn’t have looked at him. His hair was messier than usual, and his cheeks were flushed from the alcohol. Asmo’s mind flashed back to how he’d looked under the changing lights. Even now he looked handsome. Asmo willed himself to move, he screamed at every muscle in his body to do something, but he couldn’t move. He was frozen in his spot.

Was this what Lucifer felt? Was this why he couldn’t leave Diavolo?

Asmo had just assumed that a drunken Diavolo had talked Lucifer into stay over, or that he’d almost gotten himself hurt and Lucifer felt the need to care for him, but perhaps there was more to it than that.

It must have been more than that. This  _ must  _ have been what Lucifer felt. He couldn’t bring himself to leave Solomon’s side, even if he knew he couldn’t have him. It didn’t matter. What if something happened? What if he needed him? Sure he seemed fine now… but Asmo had seen what he drank, it had been a lot. Finally Asmo stood up and walked over to the other side of the bed. He tried his best not to wake Solomon as he adjusted him and tried to tuck him under the comforter. He was partially right, not only was Solomon’s shirt backwards, but also inside out. He’d have to have him fix it in the morning. He found a small trash can in the corner of the room and drug it over, just in case. He paused for a moment and brushed a few stray strands of hair from Solomon’s forehead before going back over to sit on his side. He wasn’t sure how long he sat there. He wasn’t even sure what he felt. Some part of him still felt sick, another part felt numb, and another part still felt like it was struggling to bloom. He wasn’t even sure what was running through his mind anymore, and he certainly didn’t remember falling asleep.

********

Asmo awoke that morning to a headache and the smell of pancakes from the kitchen. He whined for a moment trying to block out the pounding in his head if even for a moment. The morning after was always the  _ worst  _ part of a night of partying.

“You too?”

Oh. He’d forgotten where he was for a moment. He rolled over for a moment to look at Solomon. He had to admit… He had a cute bedhead, and his voice sounded so gravely and devine…. He needed to stop thinking about things like that. 

Asmo ran his fingers through his hair in an attempt to fix it up a little bit and sighed, “Yeah, I feel like I got hit by a bus.”

In more ways than one. He still wasn’t sure what he was feeling, wasn’t sure if he wanted to lock himself away and cry, pretend it never happened, or to just let this all run its course. Entertaining the idea of Solomon liking him could leave him hurt, and the thought terrified Asmo because there also came the fear of him losing his best friend. Asmo wasn’t sure what he’d do if that happened. He couldn’t imagine a future without Solomon. Solomon becoming a ghost of the past would be more heartbreaking than any rejection he could face…

He couldn’t lose him.

“Well, it smells like someone made breakfast today, and there’s also some pain relievers in the kitchen,” Solomon said, watching as Asmo sat up. He was silent for a moment. “You know, that looks better on you than it does on me.”

Asmo scoffed and swung his legs to the other side of the bed, pretending that the statement didn’t stir something within him, “Oh please, I’m sure it looks cute, maybe not as cute as that  _ girl  _ from last night, but still.” He hoped he was able to keep the bitterness out of his voice, “I’ll get it back to you as soon as I can.”

“Oh, ah,  _ that _ ,” Solomon chuckled, “She was cute, certainly not what I was looking for, and I certainly wasn’t expecting that.”

“Oh? Solomon not into a cute girl? Do you have your eyes on someone else by chance?”

_ Someone who’s not me. _

“Perhaps.”

_ Perhaps. _

Of course Solomon would have his eye on some cute thing. It shouldn’t be surprising. Asmo squished the little voice in the back of his head that even entertained the idea that it could be him as he went out to the kitchen.

Mammon’s head was plopped on the kitchen table, water in hand. Simeon set a small capsule down next to him before nodding to the duo, “Good morning, Luke made pancakes! I’m assuming you’ll be needing these as well?” The sound of the rattling bottle was like music to Asmo’s ringing ears.

Luke’s pancakes managed to brighten Asmo’s mood a bit along with the knowledge that the girl from last night didn’t hold a spot in Solomon’s mind. However, she had set Asmo back into reality. He should never have assumed that Solomon was Secret, it was only going to set him up for heartbreak. He had a lot to think about, a lot to think through…. He had options, and some may be better than others. He just needed to figure out which one was best, which one had the least amount of risk.

_ He couldn’t lose Solomon _ .

Once more, he was quiet as they returned to Mamon’s car after breakfast, mulling over his options. 

“You’ll send a text when you get home?” Solomon asked, hand inching towards the passenger side door. 

Asmo opened it quickly himself and nodded, slipping into his seat, “I can do that. Remember to get your suit on a hanger today alright?”

“Yeah, I’ll take care of it.”

Silence pushed its way in between them once more. Asmo was starting to hate the silence. It felt unnatural and strained.

Solomon broke the silence, “I’ll see you around, and I definitely won’t forget your coffee on Monday.”

  
  


“You never forget Solomon,” Asmo snorted, “I’ll see you later.”

_ I love you _ .

That wasn’t something he could say. Not right now anyways. Not until he could say it without his heart fluttering.

The door shut with a soft thud and Asmo settled back into his thoughts once more. Mammon’s chatter continued to muffle until it faded completely, he wished his ghosts would do the same. He had a lot to think about, and he needed to focus.

The sleeves of Solomon’s sweater split off his hands ever so slightly. Delicate and perfectly manicured fingers played with the ends of the soft sleeves. He was drowning again. Drowning in both the soft caresses of the hoodie and the smokey scent that rose from it.


	10. Confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're so close to the end, and I genuinely cannot believe I started this fic in October and it is now December. Thank you all so much for everything. I'm also really happy I managed to get this update done in the midst of finals. I know it's in the start of every chapter but (like I always say) I really mean it. 
> 
> If you want to request something or talk to me on Tumblr, my writing account is @ruewrites.  
> I update this fic every Friday (around midnight) EST.

Asmo’s could hear his brothers whispering whenever they thought he couldn’t. Some part of him knew Mammon wouldn’t keep quiet about what happened. Not that he couldn’t. He could have, but this was coming out of a place of concern. Not that Mammon would have had to tell them anything. Asmo had spent a majority of time holed up in his rooms. Sometimes quiet sobs would escape his bedroom door, other times were spent in silent contemplation about what to do. His stomach had continued to tie itself up into knots, anxieties plaguing his mind. There was a chance that maybe Solomon liked him, but then the chance that he didn’t would immediately come to mind. He could stay quiet about the whole thing and have Solomon in his life forever, or he could tell him and risk the chance of ruining everything.  _ But what if Solomon did return his feelings? _

Solomon’s hoodie stared up at him from the bed. Asmo knew he probably shouldn’t be looking at it when trying to make a decision. Hell, he’d barely been answering Solomon’s texts when they came in, sometimes not at all. He wasn’t even posting on his socials. He just needed a few minutes with a clear head, he needed Solomon to stop invading his thoughts just long enough to make a decision. 

A new letter hadn’t come in in a while either. Secret had been quiet. Honestly, it made this whole mess even more fantastic. Maybe he did have a stalker. That was a pleasant thought. Maybe they saw all of his pictures with Solomon. Maybe he would have to get Lucifer and Diavolo involved. Maybe he would have to go into hiding, maybe he would have to move all of his classes online, maybe he was putting Solomon’s life in danger. Maybe he should still accept them, put everything to a quiet agreement. They had said really nice things after all, or if they were crazy maybe it would keep Solomon safe. Oh he shouldn’t be thinking like this! His last relationship had been a complete dumpster fire, and now he was talking himself into walking straight into a nuclear meltdown. What was wrong with him? Why was he so complacent with these thoughts? He wanted to be happy, but right now the only happy scenario he could imagine was with Solomon, and he wasn’t even sure that was a possibility. All the while Solomon’s hoodie stared up at him, tempting him, and his notification rang out once more. Solomon was probably worried and that didn’t help anything at all!

Oh this situation was just wonderful! Everything was a mess and Asmo didn’t know which mess to start with first. It was too much, but how could he involve people without making an even bigger mess of the whole situation. Maybe he should have burned the first letter. He should have agreed with Satan in the cafe when he said it could be bad. He shouldn’t have accepted all of the gifts. He shouldn’t have done this to himself!

….

But then he wouldn’t have felt nearly as wonderful as he had. It was the best and most loved he’d felt in a while. Had he ever truly been in love? Had anyone ever truly loved him? These were questions he didn’t like asking himself. They brought up parts of his behavior that he’d rather not acknowledge. Sure he had issues, all of his brothers had issues. That’s what happened when your parents abandoned you. Asmo just wanted someone that wouldn’t leave. He didn’t want to face that kind of betrayal again. For a moment he thought that Secret could be the one, that they would actually love him for who he was and care for him. Then Solomon started to fill that hole and Asmo stopped resisting.

_ I won’t leave you. Not in a bajillion years. _

_ Not even a hundred billion? _

_ Not even then! _

Ever wonderful Solomon. Always there when he had family issues, when he needed help with assignments, when he was nervous or scared, when he had issues with his relationships. Solomon had kept his promise. He never left, regardless if things were good or bad. He still remembered all the times Solomon had come to get him out of the house after a bad breakup. He’d come into his room, help him get fixed up and offer to take him to his favorite cafe on the corner. If he was in a particularly bad mood he’d bring over snacks and they’d watch terrible movies together. They’d laugh until their sides hurt and rewind bits that were particularly bad just to laugh even more. Solomon knew him so well, he always knew what he needed.

…

He wished he could do that now. He wanted to call Solomon and ask for comfort. He wanted to forget everything and just watch a bad movie like everything was normal. But Solomon was part of the problem, and he couldn’t think straight about what he wanted to do if he was sitting so close to him the entire time. He needed his heart to stop trying to burst out of his chest whenever he thought about him.

Missing Solomon’s presence was something Asmo didn’t want to get used to. A life without Solomon was an empty one. He’d much rather be kept single for the rest of his life because of his brothers than lose Solomon.

Speaking of his brothers, he hadn’t gotten a text about another stakeout in a while. In fact, his brothers had been relatively quiet about Asmo’s love life. That didn’t mean they’d been completely quiet. Every now and again he’d get a text that told him to open his door, or a quiet little knock. Oh had his brothers been wonderful to him. 

Mammon had bought some rather expensive bath bombs he loved. The ones that glittered and shined as soon as they hit the water, leaving the tub a sparkling mess.The bag they came in also contained bubbles, lotions, and other various items to make the perfect self care day.

Levi left a movie he heard Asmo talk about a few times, along with some games that he claimed helped him take his mind off of things when they weren’t going to great. He’d also left a list of recommendations of shows that he enjoyed and that Asmo might like too.

Satan had brought his normal drink from the cafe with a note attached letting Asmo know that he had all sorts of stories and gossip to tell him whenever he wanted to talk.

Beel had left his favorite cupcakes from the bakery down the street. The ones with cute little sprinkles and pink icing on top.

Belphie left one of his warmest, fuzziest blankets that Asmo ended up staying curled up in most of the time.

Each gift held a piece of one of his brothers. They all put their own twist on showing how much they cared. 

At least there was one place Asmo always knew he would be loved. 

His brothers could be annoying, and may drive him absolutely insane, but he loved them more than anything. They cared about him, even if it wasn’t always vocalized. They’d been through a lot together.

Asmo had a feeling Mammon had pseudo orchestrated the whole thing. After all, he’d seen first hand how upset Asmo had been Friday night.Sure he hadn’t seen the whole thing, but honestly he probably didn’t need to. Mammon was the second oldest after all, he had helped Lucifer take care of them all, even if he wasn’t always the best role model for them.

Perhaps this is why when he heard a knock on his door, he was expecting Mammon. Asmo was curled up in the fuzzy blanket and watching a movie. He’d given up a while ago trying to work on his latest design. He’d been having a hard time finding inspiration among the mess of petals scattered on the floor. Part of him wanted all of those wonderful feelings back, even if it meant he’d be torturing himself. He reached out to pause the movie, blanket still wrapped around him tightly. He waited a few moments, and then the knock came again. Well, it looks like they wanted to come in. 

“Coming,” he said, plodding over to the door, tightening his grip around the blanket wrapped snugly around him. He forced one of his charming smiles to spread across his face. There wasn’t a point in making them worry more than they already were. This was his issue to sort out, it wasn’t his brothers’ fault he’d given in.

“You know you all-” Asmo couldn’t remember what he was going to say, the words died on his lips before they even had their first shot at seeing the outside world. His blood ran ice cold. This was something he’d forgotten about. Something he should have been  _ equally _ worried about.

Lucifer stood before him, looking down at Asmo with an unreadable expression. Suddenly Asmo felt incredibly tiny, and part of him wished he was back in the bathroom at the party. “May I come in?” he asked.

Lucifer’s voice was smooth and completely unwavering, face refusing to betray emotion. Asmo was never surprised he became a lawyer, and he definitely wasn’t surprised by the fact that his name made people shudder. Asmo loved his brother, truly he did, but right now? Asmo didn’t know what to expect. So he nodded slowly and opened his door a little wider. Lucifer stepped inside and nodded at Asmo who shut the door quickly. 

One time when he was a teenager, Lucifer had caught him sneaking out. Asmo couldn’t place the feeling he felt back then, but whatever it was it was stirring up inside him once more. Secrets couldn’t be kept from Lucifer for long, Asmo had known that. Yet he had tried. He couldn’t meet Lucifer’s eyes.

“I heard you were upset,” Lucifer started, arms crossed, “Not that I needed to hear, it’s not hard to tell when you’re off.”

“It’s nothing. I’m just sorting some things out that happened last night-”

“So another person is involved.”

His voice went low. Asmo knew that tone. He’d heard it before. He’d heard it  _ hundreds  _ of times before.

Asmo went quiet again. He didn’t want to talk about it. He  _ really  _ didn’t want to talk about it. He knew how Lucifer had gotten when he learned the truth about Asmo’s last relationship. Yes, Lucifer had always been protective and yes he got angry when one of Asmo’s partners made him upset. But his last relationship… He’d never seen Lucifer so angry. It terrified him. Lucifer had raised his voice, he’d looked so inhumane in that moment. He remembered having to talk Lucifer out of going to his dorm, he didn’t want to file anything against him. He didn’t want to see his brother get in trouble. Asmo hadn’t seen Lucifer for a while after that. When he had seen him again, he was scared to bring it up again.

Asmo didn’t want Lucifer thinking of Solomon in a negative light, especially when it wasn’t Solomon’s fault. Solomon hadn’t forced him into having feelings for him, he just simply existed, and that’s what drew Asmo in. Everything about Solomon drew him closer. The way he looked, his intellect, hell even that nerdy side of him… Asmo loved it all. He just needed to decide if he wanted to keep that to himself or not...

Sitting down on the bed, Asmo kept his eyes trained on the floor. “Well, yes and no,” he said. Gripping the blanket tightly around him as a form of safety. How to tread around this subject with Lucifer… He glanced up at his brother ever so slightly, “I don’t think…. They don’t know that they’re involved in this situation.”

Lucifer raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Asmo thought he would have preferred he said something in that moment. He wanted a hunt or a clue to how his brother might react, instead he got nothing. Somehow that was worse. Lucifer now already knew more than Mammon, what could he say from here? How would he even begin to explain all of the letters? Where would he even begin? How to say it all in a way Lucifer would understand…

_ Hi Lucifer! You see I just got all these little love letters at school I didn’t tell you about because I totally thought that you might think this person was a stalker! Even though thinking too much about it, that makes sense! But nope. I wanted to live in my own little fairytale where everything was happy and going to turn out exactly how I wanted it to! Oh also? I projected all of these feelings onto my best friend who I’ve had a crush on for years! I thought he might actually like me back like that! Isn’t that funny Luci? Well, a girl kissed him at a party that you didn’t know about that Mammon and I went to and I had a mental breakdown in the bathroom. Now I’ve realized that he may not like me at all but I still have lots of feelings for him, and the letters haven’t come in in a while so I very well may have a stalker! Solomon says he likes someone else, and not that girl, and I want it to be me, but it’s probably not. My life is going to shit and I don’t know what to do. Isn’t that funny Luci? Isn’t it? _

Yes. that would go over  _ perfectly  _ with Lucifer. Lucifer who could do no wrong. Lucifer who was the head of their family. Nothing bad ever happened to him. Nothing. 

Asmo sniffled and sat down on his bed. No. No he wasn’t going to cry now. Not right now. Not in front of Lucifer. He couldn’t do that, it would just make him pry more.

“Asmodeus-” Lucifer started, then he stopped. He didn’t make a move towards Asmo, but he also didn’t back away. Maybe he would just leave. Take a page from the others for once and leave Asmo to process by himself. After all, it wasn’t any of Lucifer’s business right? Just like his relationship with Diavolo was none of his business. 

“I don’t need a lecture Lucifer,” he snapped. He wasn’t sure where that came from. Perhaps he was due to the overwhelming reality that was constantly swimming around him in this moment. “Listen, I know I screwed up. I know I let my heart get ahead of me. I know, I don’t need to hear it. I-”

Asmo felt a pair of arms wrap around him. It was a bit awkward, but then again affection and comfort hadn’t always been Lucifer’s strong suits. He tried, he really did. But even if he wasn’t always great at it, there was something undeniably soothing. It reminded him of when he was a child once more, and Lucifer was trying his best to fill the hole their parents left in their family. They’d taken Lilith and left the rest of them behind. Asmo still wasn’t really all that sure about what had happened, and Lucifer refused to talk about it. Asmo had vague memories of being held a little closer, a little tighter, for a few months after they left. All of his memories were vague and fuzzy but this… This was a feeling he remembered. 

“Why would you think any of that?” Lucifer asked, pulling away and making Asmo look him in the eye. Asmo wasn’t aware til that moment that anyone would look so stern yet gentle at the same time. Part of Asmo still wanted to look away, but at the same time he felt compelled to spill everything. 

Finally, he sighed and backed up. He hadn’t realized how tense he’d been until his body finally allowed himself to relax. How long had he been that tense? He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Well, you were never the most approving of past relationships.You didn’t ever seem to _ like  _ them,” he said.

Lucifer had never been rude to them in the slightest, but he also hadn’t been entirely warm with them either. Asmo could always feel him judging them, he knew he didn’t like them. Maybe that’s part of the reason why Asmo had kept quiet about some of his past relationships. Maybe Lucifer had known what they were like all along. Maybe he saw something in their eyes or the way they spoke. Or maybe it was how they all avoided Lucifer’s gaze. Thinking back on it, many of them always had something to say about Lucifer. 

_ Your oldest brother is kind of scary. _

_ Yo Lucifer? What’s his problem? He kept  _ **_staring_ ** _ at me. _

_ I thought he was your dad with how he was acting! _

Lucifer shook his head and let out a sigh. He was quiet, thinking over his words before speaking. “Well, I certainly feel justified in my disdain for them, they all ended for reasons that I don’t feel I need to bring up,” he said. He certainly wasn’t wrong, but it still made Asmo frown.

“Oh? So is that why you’re so judgemental?”

“No. Asmodeus I-” he stopped again and closed his eyes, “Asmodeus. You’re special. You truly are. I just want to see you treated like you deserve. Someone who sees how special you are.” 

Asmo was waiting for the catch, waiting for there to be more. But there wasn’t. Lucifer just stared at him. Waiting. Asmo brought his knees to his chest. This was uncomfortable. Incredibly uncomfortable. He wished he was still putting up a front. One he could hide behind, but he couldn’t do that to Lucifer. No, Lucifer would know. He was too smart for any of this. 

“Are you going to stop hiding things from me now?”

_ He knew. _

Asmo nodded deftly and swallowed. He reached towards his desk and rummaged through it for a minute. He didn’t need to. He was stalling, and he knew it. He’d just been hiding this all from Lucifer for so long. Of course he knew something wasn’t right, knew something was up. Lucifer knew everything that went on in their house. How Asmo would never know. Despite everything running through his mind in that moment, the idea of Lucifer reading the letters filled him with absolute dread. His fingers caressed the envelopes. It was like a reflex at this point. Even if he couldn’t touch them, he could still caress their letters. He hadn’t even realized his hands were shaking when he finally handed them over to Lucifer. 

Lucifer examined the envelopes for a moment before opening the first one. “Are these the only things you received.”

“I got a few gifts from time to time. Just small things like chocolate or little toys.”

He nodded slowly, eyes scanning over the words carefully. When he finished, he folded it up meticulously and tucked it back into its resting place within the envelope. Then he would move to the next letter and start the process over again. It was an odd thing to watch. To Asmo, it seemed like Lucifer was treating this like a case more than Asmo bearing his secrets to him. These letters were personal, yet his expression never changed. Hours seemed to tick by and yet halt all together by the time Lucifer was organizing all of the envelopes into a neat little pile and handed them back to Asmo. 

“You said this other person doesn’t know they’re involved?”

“Well, yes-”   
  


“Why?”

Asmo furrowed his brow, “Why?”

“Why don’t they know?”

Asmo swallowed a groan, “Maybe I don’t want them to know.”

“Go on.”

“I’m not one of your clients Lucifer. You don’t need to get every bit of information out of me,” Asmo said, shooting his brother a look, but he continued anyways, “Listen, maybe I just don’t want to ruin the way something is. Maybe I like the way things are. Maybe-”

_ Maybe I don’t deserve him _ .

Asmo stopped himself before the words left his mouth. 

Lucifer was silent for a moment, then a soft chuckle left his lips and he shook his head. “Oh, how I wish you still had that same mindset with me. You didn’t sneak around nearly as much as a child and you certainly didn’t keep nearly as many secrets from me.”

Asmo couldn’t help but pout. Lucifer was joking around! How could he be doing this. Lucifer should be grilling him right now! Lucifer should want to give him a lecture! Now Asmo was happy that he wasn’t, but still! He’d been so anxious about what Lucifer would do, only for him to  _ tease  _ him! Had all of his worry really been over  _ nothing _ ? Maybe he wasn’t too different from the rest of his brother’s after all. “All you can do is make a joke? Seriously?”

“Apologies. I suppose Diavolo may, unfortunately, be rubbing off on me.”

Asmo didn’t miss the soft smile that crossed his face. How lucky was Lucifer? He had someone who was vocal about how much he adored him, someone who would do anything and find any loophole just to see him. Someone who would do anything for him. Someone who loved him unconditionally. 

“It must be nice having someone like him, someone who adores you and loved you as much as him. I think he’d run around the world if you asked him to.”

“He is a rather persistent man, I don’t think he would have stopped asking until I agreed to go on a date with him.”

“How many times did he have to ask?”

“Three times.”

Lucifer softened for a moment as Asmo laughed. It wasn’t a surprise. Lucifer hadn’t dated much from what Asmo knew. He’d been busy with school and taking care of the rest of them. He hadn’t had time for romance. By the time he’d gotten into college and his post grad, Lucifer had gotten into a routine. A routine that Diavolo had been determined to break. Lucifer and Diavolo were good together, they’d been close before they started being together. Honestly Asmo wasn’t sure when they started dating. All he knew was that Diavolo seemed to love his brother more than anything.

“I think he’s good for you,” Asmo said, “He’s so dedicated, and he loves you a lot…”

“He’s certainly something else,” Lucifer agreed, “I want the same thing for you, for all of you. I want you to be happy, even if you all don’t always believe it. I mean it when I say you’re special Asmodeus.”

Asmo looked down at the letters once more. Secret seemed to think he was special too. Maybe… Just maybe they had meant every single thing they said in their letters. The very idea made Asmo blush ever so slightly. Then he mind flickered to his ever dedicated best friend. Oh what he wouldn’t give to be lucky enough to be with him, just like how Lucifer was lucky to have someone like Diavolo.

Then Lucifer pressed something into Asmo’s hands, effectively snapping him out of his thoughts. He looked down, and staring back at him was another pink envelope, crisp and perfect with his name written on the cover. “You know, the funny thing about Diavolo is how  _ persistent _ he is. He took a chance with me, three chances actually, he’s incredibly dedicated,” he said, “Now, this doesn't mean I’m going to be  _ easy  _ on them, but I do want to see you happy. Only if this is something you’d want to do.”

Asmo was only half listening as he tore open the letter. His fingers stumbling and tripping over themselves to open it. Then he stopped and turned to Lucifer. “How did you get this?” he asked slowly.

“It was given to me, for you while I was at work. Barbatos had to page me down.”

“Then you know-”

“I promised I won’t tell.”

“Really?” 

“Diavolo made me promise not to tell. He thought the entire thing was rather romantic and adorable,” Lucifer smirked, once Asmo realized this meant that he wasn’t going to get the information he wanted, “Though, you should read it now, I do believe it’s time sensitive.”

Asmo nodded quickly and went back to opening the letter. He looked down expecting the usual gorgeous words scrolled across the page, but that wasn’t the case. It was hurried, as if Secret had been in a rush. The writing was shaky and a little uncertain, and the paper a little crumpled.

_ Meet me at Cradsbury Park at 7 _

_ I promise I’ll explain _

_ I  _ _ need _ _ want to see you _

_ Please. _

_ Your Secret _

It wasn’t the normal format. But that didn’t matter. The blanket flew off of him and soon Asmo was scattering to get ready. He needed to fix his makeup and put something nice on. This was the moment he’d been waiting for. His heart was pounding in his chest and his mind went to autopilot. Lucifer stood from his bed and straightened out his shirt a bit before walking towards the door. 

“You really should open your text messages Asmodeus. It’s rather rude not to. I thought you knew better,” before he left, Lucifer turned towards Asmo one last time, “Call me if you need me.”

Asmo was only half listening to his brother as he scurried around his room.

*****

Asmo stood in front of his door nervously. He could turn back. He could forget all of this. But he needed to know, or else he’d always wonder. He thought he looked nice enough, winter boots, a cute sweater under his jacket, one of his nicer pairs of leggings... At least he hoped he looked nice enough. He tightened his coat around himself. Phone buzzing one last time in his pocket, Asmo opened the door and started his walk down to the old park.


	11. A New Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all once more for everything. I wish I could show my appreciation more. We have one more chapter to go after this and I hope you all like it.
> 
> The last update will happen on Friday. If you'd like to come visit me on tumblr to make a request, chat, or anything else, you can find me @ruewrites, I also cross post my fics there too!

It was a chilly night, the trees were bare and a few brown leaves still scurried across the sidewalk. Winter was starting to call, and cleaning up what little mess fall had left behind. Time had passed and Asmo hadn’t realized. Time had become irrelevant. Between the notes from Secret and his time spent with Solomon and going through the motions of his classes everything just seemed to flow together. The sky was clear and the moon was full, shining down on him like a beacon as his heels clicked against the sidewalk. The stars twinkled in the sky like little diamonds. It was a rather romantic night, the world around him seemed silent. 

Asmo slowly walked through the dark playground. The old gates creaked as they opened. He came here alone, steeling himself for whatever outcome was about to await him. Keeping his breathing even and his heartbeat steady had never been so hard in all of his life. He remembered it being much more shiny and new than it was now… How long had it been since he’s been here? Paint was chipping off a once emerald green slide, revealing the dirtied white plastic underneath, and rust clung to monkey bars and chains of swings. 

Things changed.

This wasn’t news to Asmodeus, but the feeling it left in his stomach was a strange one. Not quite empty but it didn’t quite reach longing either. It was odd, like being a ghost among memories. Even if things looked different now, he could still picture the way they were when he was a child. 

But he wasn’t alone. 

A man sat on the swings in the distance, A steady, rhythmic creaking followed his movements.

_ Back and Forth. _

_ Back and Forth. _

His eyes were trained on the ground, unmoving. 

Asmo felt his heart stop, and jump up into his throat. His cheeks started to darken. He recognized the figure, he would have recognized him anywhere. Even though everything else around him stopped his legs kept him moving forward to the swings. Even now he was afraid to get his hopes up, and yet his heart was ready to leap out of his chest with joy. The chains rattled as he took a seat.

Despite years of wear and tear and looking like it could fall apart at any moment, it still stood strong. It had withstood years of harsh weather and unforgiving winds and people who purposely tried to add dents or break it down. Yet it was still here. It didn’t look the same as when it was first built, but now it also held memories beneath a rough exterior.

_ Back and Forth. _

_ Back and Forth. _

“Solomon?” Asmo’s voice was soft, almost like he was afraid of something.

Solomon stopped, his hands tightened around the chains for a moment. He swallowed the lump in his throat and took in the crisp night air, “Asmodeus.”

“You-?”

“Me.”

“But I- I thought that you-”

“What? That I  _ didn’t  _ like you?” Solomon chuckled, “You never  _ asked _ Asmodeus.”

Asmo’s face turned even pinker. Of course he’d never asked. He’d assumed Solomon’s feelings because it was safer to assume rejection. “Well  _ you  _ didn’t ask either! And what was I supposed to do? Risk losing my best friend? Risk one of the most important people in my life? Especially when I didn’t even know… know if you….”

“I saw your partners, I’m not blind. They were all beautiful, I didn’t really think I was like them,” Solomon looked like he was getting nervous. He was playing with the rusty chains of the swing and his eyes turned back towards the ground. “Is this your way of saying you don’t want to?”

“ _ No. _ ”

Asmo was scared his words came out too fast at first, “No, I never said that.” 

Silence.

_ Back and Forth. _

_ Back and Forth. _

Solomon saw Asmodeus stand out of the corner of his eye and nodded to himself. He really shouldn’t have gotten his hopes up. He prepared himself for this. Especially after Friday night. He’d been so off, and Solomon had made one stupid mistake. He didn’t know why his drunken self thought that woman had wanted nothing more than a dance. Maybe it was because all he would think about was Asmodeus. He’d looked so wonderful, better than any words could describe. Solomon felt his fingers twitch every time he brushed up against him.  _ And he had been so warm.  _ Asmodeus was always warm. It was an incredibly wonderful feeling. Solomon honestly thought he might have kissed him that night if things had gone differently. Asmodeus was special, and he deserved someone just as wonderful as he was. Solomon wasn’t-

Asmo took his hand and tugged him away from the swing. Solomon was shocked and just stood there for a moment. He was adorable, beautiful, beyond what words could describe.  _ And he  _ **_had_ ** _ him. _ Asmodeus opened and closed his mouth a few times, searching for words he couldn’t find. They came closer together. Solomon’s hands on his hips, Asmodeus laying his arms over his shoulders.

Years of dreaming could even begin to describe how Solomon’s lips felt against his or how wonderful it would feel to have his hands gently caress his body. 

Asmo had been overwhelmingly underprepared for how this would feel.

Near the end of their kiss, Asmo couldn’t help but start laughing. He didn’t realize the tears falling from his eyes until Solomon’s thumb brushed against his cheek. “What?” Solomon asked softly.

Asmo shook his head, “This… All of this is  _ so _ … So stupid. All this time, I thought you didn’t like me…” He leaned in and kissed Solomon again. He pulled back only slightly, their lips barely brushing, “I thought you  _ couldn’t  _ like me like that.”

"Well, I can, and I will if you don't mind me doing so."

He thought that Solomon couldn’t have possibly pulled him closer, kissing him until he was gasping for air, hands exploring his body almost hesitantly. Asmo did nothing but give him soft words of encouragement, their quiet laughter breaking the silence of the night. Asmodeus was blooming. Each petal grew and unfurled faster and more vibrant than the last. Vines curled around his arms drawing him closer to the source of his affections. They were tangling them together. Braiding, twisting, and turning until their roots were completely intertwined. Somehow, they ended up curled up together close to the old playset. Asmo was nestled comfortably in Solomon’s arms, head on his chest and listening to the soft thump of his heart. Solomon’s face was buried in strawberry blonde locks, and every now and again he’d deliver soft kisses to Asmo’s head. His hand was planted firmly on Asmo’s hip, thumb gently caressing his soft skin.

Asmo let out a soft sigh, “I’m afraid.”

Solomon removed his chin from Asmo’s head and looked down at him curiously, “Afraid of what?”

“That this is all a dream,” he murmured, “That I’ll wake up tomorrow, without you, alone in my bed. That I’ll still have all your unanswered text messages waiting for me to open. All the missed calls… That I’ll be without you again, that I’ll still be left wondering alone in my room.”

“It isn’t a dream, unless we’re dreaming together,” Solomon said.

“I want to stay the night with you,” Asmo blurted out, “Please? Just so I know that it’s all real. I want you to hold me until morning. I want-”

He was stopped by another kiss from Solomon. His lashes fluttered for a moment. There was no way this could be a dream. If it was, he wanted to stay here for the rest of his life. Solomon’s hands were cold and left goosebumps all over his body, but Asmo didn’t mind in the slightest. “I’ll stay with you. Wherever you want to go, I’ll go too,” Solomon whispered, inches away from his lips. Asmo loved the way he held him close, how his hands caressed him, comforting him. 

“You mean it?” Asmo asked softly.

Solomon nodded and took one of Asmo’s hands to his lips, leaving a kiss against the soft skin, “I’d follow you to the ends of the earth if you’d asked me. I’d steal every star out of the sky for you if you wanted them. Anything you want, it’s yours.” 

That was how Asmo ended up in Solomon’s arms that night. He was drowning again, but this time he wasn’t panicked. He was drowning in Solomon’s warmth, in the wonderful feeling in his chest. The smell of Solomon filled his senses once more as he held him close. They fit together so well. Asmo wasn’t sure how long they stayed up together. Hours ticked by as he played with Solomon’s finger tips under the covers and soft words were exchanged. Everytime Solomon pressed a kiss to his forehead Asmo felt a little shiver run through him and his smile grew a little wider. He just wanted to stay like this forever with his body close to Solomon’s. Every time he thought he was going to drift off, another surge of energy ran through him and he was thrown back into a fit of giggles and light conversation with Solomon. Asmo couldn’t even comprehend how happy he was. This was beyond beautiful, beyond perfect. It was everything Asmo had ever wanted to feel and more.

Solomon was magical, in more ways than Asmo could have imagined.

*********

To say that Asmo had caused a commotion amongst his brothers would be an understatement. One of them had come up to check on him after he missed breakfast, only to see Solomon’s messy mop of silver hair rise from his bed. This wouldn’t have been cause for commotion under normal circumstances. However, the two of them had been tangled up together in the same position they’d fallen asleep in. Well, if Asmo could be certain about anything, it was that his night before with Solomon hadn’t been a dream.

All hell broke loose within the Morningstar estate that morning.

Aside from that, Asmo managed to learn a few of Solomon’s tricks. The first one was Simeon. Apparently Simeon knew about Solomon’s little crush and was also the reason that Asmo couldn’t recognize the penmanship of the letters. Simeon had stunning handwriting and a collection of pretty pens. All of the letters outside of the last one, hand been written versions of Solomon’s words by Simeon. Solomon came up with it, and Simeon helped make it prettier. That and Solomon knew that Asmo would recognize his handwriting. Apparently, Simeon had thought their story was cute, and had been willing to help Solomon. Well. That and according to Simeon Solomon had the most lovesick puppy dog expression on his face whenever he thought Asmo wasn’t looking. 

“He was  _ hopeless _ ,” Simeon claimed, “You should have heard the way his voice tripped over the words, or how sappy he sounded when he would get lost in his descriptions. Every letter had to be  _ perfect _ .” Of course Asmo had heard these things when Solomon wasn’t in the room. After all, he couldn’t embarrass his darling like that… or maybe he could, but that would be for another time. 

Apparently, Solomon had also been practicing in order to slip the notes without Asmo knowing. Asmo had to concede at this point, Solomon’s magic tricks had come in handy for him. Solomon had had the cutest little smug smirk on his face when Asmo finally said so. 

Asmo yanked Solomon’s hoodie over his head and looked at himself in the mirror. For a moment he hesitated. He could always go with something a little nicer… He debated with himself, going back and forth between his options, eyes darting towards his closet. He could go all out instead of wearing the hoodie. Slowly he pulled his gaze away from his closet and nodded at himself in the mirror. This was good, this would be good. He took another moment to do last minute touch ups on his hair and makeup before heading downstairs at the sound of Cerberus’ barking, grabbing another jacket on the way down. 

Solomon was kneeling on the ground, stroking Cerberus’ head and looking up to talk to Lucifer who was leaning against the doorway. The dog kept squirming and quickly walking around in circles while giving Solomon every possible hello he could think of. Asmo wasn’t exactly what they were talking about, but the sound of Solomon’s laugh made his heart flutter. Oh he looked wonderful…

Adjusting his bag over his shoulder, Asmo continued his way down the staircase and caught Solomon’s eye. The distraction was what Cerberus needed in order to knock Solomon over and lick his face, tail wagging behind him like a hurricane. 

“Cerberus, down,” Lucifer chuckled, Asmo racing over to yank the dog off of his new boyfriend. Solomon sat up looking a little dazed, he leaned over to check something in his own back before straightening himself out and getting to his feet. He wiped his face off before pressing a small kiss against Asmo’s forehead. Cerberus continued to squirm at Lucifer’s feet for a few moments before settling down.

Solomon pulled back slightly and his hand moved to brush a bit of hair out of Asmo’s face. Despite Lucifer standing close by, Asmo leaned into his touch ever so slightly. Nothing had ever felt this right to him before. No person had ever felt so perfect for him before. “Are you ready to head out?” Solomon asked, letting his thumb run over Asmo’s cheek. With a nod he took Solomon’s arm and was about to head out the door.

“Let me know when you’ll be home.  _ Try  _ not to stay out too late,” Lucifer said, eyes trained on the pair. 

Asmo giggled and waved, “I’ll  _ try _ .” 

Of course, if he was having fun, he certainly wouldn’t want to end it anytime soon. Why should he cut his time with Solomon short? Honestly, they’d fallen into a couple’s routine quite easily. Perhaps it was the idea that they’d had a rather stable relationship before, but whatever the reason Asmo enjoyed it. He hoped he could keep it this way too.

The crisp, cold air bit at Asmo’s cheeks and nose, turning them the tinting them red ever so slightly. He huddled closer to Solomon’s arm a little closer. Solomon’s eyes glanced towards him, eyes settling on the hoodie peeking out from his jacket. Asmo felt himself grow fidgety. Did he like it? Was he upset Asmo hadn’t dressed nicer? Would he pull away from Asmo? Refuse to touch him?

“You’re wearing my hoodie,” Solomon finally said.

“Yes,” Asmo said, fidgeting with Solomon’s sleeve, “Do you like it?”

_ Is it okay? _

Solomon hummed and removed his arm from Asmo’s grip. He felt his throat tighten, but before he had time to even dive into a pit or regrets and failure, the arm slipped around his waist and pulled him closer into Solomon’s side. “It’s adorable. It looks good on you. I like it one you better than me,” Solomon smiled. Honestly, to Asmo it sounded like he was stumbling over his words a bit, but he didn’t mind. Asmo was too busy processing the feelings in his chest. He leaned into him closer as they walked down the street, everyone else around them slowly disappearing. They didn’t matter, not when Asmo’s entire world was holding him so close.

“Sorry, if I startled you. I uh- wanted to do this earlier, but I’m pretty sure your brother just threatened me before you came downstairs,” he chuckled, motioning towards his arm around Asmo’s waist, “But that’s to be expected of Lucifer right? I was a little surprised he didn’t say more to me.”

Asmo’s body eased, a smile finding its way to his face, “Well, he does know you, it’s not like you’re a complete stranger.”

“That doesn’t mean he cares about you any less.”

“I suppose that’s true. Maybe it’s because you already came to him about me.”

He could only imagine Solomon standing in the lobby with Barbatos waiting for Lucifer. Fingers playing with the edge of the envelope. Of course Lucifer wouldn’t have just agreed to give Asmo the letter. He’d known Solomon since he and Asmo were kids, he knew how close they were. Of course he wanted to make sense of the entire situation. Asmo was now sure that Lucifer knew something was up with how he and his brothers were acting, and once Solomon spilled everything from his side it had all clicked together for him. Lucifer had known about the letters before Asmo even pulled them out of their hiding spot. Even if no one said anything about it, Asmo was sure Lucifer would have grilled Solomon right there if it hadn’t been for Diavolo finding the whole ordeal quite adorable.

“I wouldn’t let him do anything to you regardless,” Asmo teased, looking up at Solomon. It was true. Asmo wouldn’t let any of his brothers even touch Solomon. 

When Asmo glanced up at Solomon, he noticed he had his hair pinned back. His eyes widened. He’d been so concerned with what Solomon would think of his attire, of him, that he hadn’t noticed he pinned his bangs back. “Your hair,” he started, “You pinned it back.”

Solomon nodded, reaching up with his free hand to run over the pulled back strands. “You mentioned that you liked it like this. So I figured I’d try and do it.”

_ All because Asmo liked it _ .

Asmo stared at him for a moment, head tilting every which way. Eventually he let out a small hum. “Well, it is true that I like your bangs back so I can see your incredibly handsome face, and that I think it’s really hot for you,” he said, reached up to put Solomon’s hair back into its normal position on his forehead, “I like this too, maybe even better. It's more  _ you _ .”

The blush that spread across Solomon’s face was hard to miss, and Asmo couldn’t help but admire it. It was also rather adorable how he tried to hide it behind his free arm. Oh he was so  _ wonderful _ . It would have been a crime if Asmo hadn’t kissed his cheek right then. 

Eventually they came to a little coffee shop on the corner where the couple tucked themselves away in a corner on the second floor. Solomon dug around in his bag as Asmo slipped his jacket off and buried himself further into Solomon’s hoodie. He really did love it, maybe he could get Solomon to spray his cologne on it every now and again, or he could wear it when he spent the night…. Or he could always take more of Solomon’s clothes.

“Ah! It’s okay,” Solomon said, making Asmo peak up from his comfortable spot in the hoodie. Solomon pulled out a bundle of bright yellow flowers from his bag. They were in full bloom and vibrant despite the harsh weather. “I was worried they’d get ruined. I think they’re the same ones you liked when we were kids, I had to contact Ash just to make sure. They even knew a little shop that had a green house that grew them.”

Asmo took them with gentle hands, fingers gently grazing over the soft petals. They took him back to their younger days. “You used to pick flowers for me all the time,” he said softly, “They used to grow these all the time at that little ol’ playground.”

“Flowers always made you smile.”

Asmo carefully set the flowers in his bag before setting his hands on the table. Solomon’s hands quickly engulfed his own and held them tight. “I love them, thank you.”

The feeling of Solomon’s thumbs caressing his hands was a soothing one. He liked the way their hands molded together perfectly no matter how they were holding hands. 

“I was actually thinking about getting another tattoo too.”

Asmo couldn’t help but snort a little, “Where would you even put it? You’re covered!”

“Well, I have a few spaces and I think I’m gonna let you choose,” Solomon took one of his hands back so that he could sip at his coffee, “I want this one to be yours. Like one dedicated to you and everything. I was also hoping you might design it. That way it would be special.”

“ _ Solomon _ .”

“What? I’m serious.”

“I know and that’s what-” Asmo took in a deep breath, thinking through what he wanted to say next, “That’s what worries me. Solomon we haven’t even been dating all that long, and you already want to do something like that? What if-”

It made Asmo a little worried. He wanted this to last with Solomon for as long as possible. 

“No what if’s,” Solomon tutted, “It’s something I want to do.”

“We haven’t even been together that long.”

“But we’ve known each other for a long time now haven’t we?”

Asmo bit his lip and looked off to the side. It was rather sweet, and Solomon was right. They’d known each other for years now, but they’d just started dating. Then he felt Solomon start playing with his fingers. Gently gliding over top of them, sliding in between them, and squeezing them ever so gently. Just like that, he was drawn back to the now. He loved Solomon, and Solomon felt the same way about him. 

“Hey,” Solomon’s voice was gentle, bringing Asmo’s eyes back to his own, “I won’t do it if it’ll make you uncomfortable. If you don’t want me to do it I won’t,I just thought it’d be a nice reminder of you, no matter what happens.”

Asmo thought it over for a few more moments, then a small chuckle left him, “Well, it’ll take me awhile to come up with a design or two for you. By then you should be able to see if you still want to be with me or not.”

That last part was more of a joke than anything, and Solomon couldn’t help but scoff, “Please. As if I’d change my mind. I’ve known you since we were kids Asmodeus, I know you, and I love everything you are. I thought I made that clear in my letters. Perhaps I was wrong.”

“Solomon-”

“Perhaps I should say it more? Text you when I can’t see you? I’ll say it as many times as you need me to and then more Asmodeus. You’re absolutely  _ stunning  _ in every way. I love your passion and how you hold yourself and-”

Asmo put his finger up to Solomon’s lips. The words spoken weren’t as elegant as the ones written on paper, but he didn’t mind. He always knew Solomon was a man of few words, and hearing him gush would always be a treat. It also let Asmo know that he meant every word. Solomon’s face had also become red once more as he started going through his list, and his smile had become so soft. Asmo couldn’t believe how much more in love he could fall. Every time he thought he was at his peak, Solomon brought him even higher.

It was wonderful to have a partner like Solomon.

“I love hearing your words, they’re beautiful, you’re intelligent, and you’re the most wonderful man I could have ever asked for,” he said, “But if you keep talking like that, I am not going to be able to keep myself away from that handsome face of yours.” He brought his hand back to his side to grab his cup. This date was hardly different from any other time he and Solomon had hung out, yet it was vastly different from other dates he’d been on in the past. 

It was simple, and sweet, and cliche. And somehow it was one of the best dates Asmo had ever been on. Why did it have to end? Why would he have to go home? Why not spend as much time with Solomon as he possibly could? This was the first time in a long time Asmo genuinely wanted to hang out with his date in a long time. Maybe it was because he and Solomon already had chemistry, but he didn’t care. He loved Solomon and everything he was.

“How can I keep my words from you when they’re true?” Solomon asked. He lifted Asmo’s hand up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss against them. 

“Well I guess you don’t  _ have  _ to stop,” Asmo giggled, “I mean, Lucifer did say that all I had to do was text him when I was going to come home.”

Solomon raised his brow and tilted his head ever so slightly, “Hm? And what does that have to do with right now?”

“Well, no one said I had to come home tonight.”

“Asmodeus-”

“And then you can compliment me for as long as you want.”

“Don’t you need things from your house?”

“You don’t think I packed them already?”

Asmo gestured towards his bag and Solomon couldn’t help but chuckle, “Why am I not surprised.”

Solomon’s eyes flickered, and for the first time, Asmo thought he saw flecks of gold in those beautiful eyes. Perhaps it was because he was finally allowing himself to become lost within them and really study them. Asmo could spend years lost in those eyes. There was so much behind them, and Asmo wanted to take time to unwrap every little gift they held.

“Waking up next to you is a feeling I enjoy, you know,” Solomon continued, “The bed isn’t as cold when you’re in it, and your presence is so comforting. I sleep well when I’m with you.”

“Mhm, because I make you go to bed so you can’t stay up until the early hours of the morning.”

“Alright I’ll concede on that front.”

Solomon’s sleeping schedule was atrocious. Sure Asmo’s wasn’t the best due to college, but Solomon’s genuinely had him worried for his health sometimes. Now, with the boyfriend title, Asmo could finally convince him to go to bed without much fuss. Honestly it was something Solomon needed, and he’d fight tooth and nail to make sure his boyfriend was getting the sleep he needed even if said boyfriend wasn’t always the easiest to convince. 

“If I stay the night, I could make breakfast in the morning.”

“Shouldn’t I make breakfast for you since you’re my guest?”

“Solomon I once witnessed you light  _ eggs  _ on fire. I don’t really want to take my chances.” 

So cooking wasn’t one of his strong suits, but Asmo didn’t mind. He and his brothers had been switching on and off on kitchen duties for years. Cooking for one boyfriend compared to six brothers? That was nothing. It would also mean that Solomon would have left overs and not try to commit accidental arson. That didn’t mean that he would say no if Solomon offered to take him out, he just didn’t want him cooking.

Despite the fact that Solomon was rather cold most of the time, being close to him made Asmo feel warm both inside and out. The sun was still in the sky by the time they left the coffee shop and a snowfall was in the middle of its steady descent down to the earth below. Asmo tightened his jacket around himself he couldn’t help but glance at Solomon. When he did his breath caught in his throat and he immediately went for his phone to take a picture. The snow formed around his head in a perfect halo and made his silver hair sparkle. Solomon stopped and turned to look at him.

“You looked pretty,” Asmo said, looking down at the picture on his phone. There was a reason he had asked Solomon to be his model. Well, more than one reason anyways. Yes it was true he’d always had a crush on Solomon, whether he liked to admit it or not, but he was also attractive and looked really nice in pictures (when he wasn’t thinking too hard about it). 

Solomon looked at their surroundings for a moment. The snow was starting to settle on the ground in a soft white blanket. Most areas were undisturbed still and the few footprints there were, were slowly covered by the falling snow. “We could take some pictures together if you wanted to. You might get some nice ones to post,” he said. 

Oh and Asmo most certainly got some nice ones. Some of just him, some of Solomon, one of him right as Solomon nailing him with a snowball, both of them on the ground because Asmo had soon after tackled his boyfriend-

Asmo scrolled through them all as he was curled up on the couch with Solomon. He wanted to get a few printed out to hang on his wall along with posting them to his pages. A cheesy holiday romance was playing on the TV in front of them. The two of them always enjoyed making fun of the movies and how each one had the same plot as before. Although, there was the occasional one that would make Asmo’s heart swell. There were a few pictures of the two of them that Asmo couldn’t stop flipping between. A couple had stopped and asked if they wanted them to take some for them.

And those pictures had been wonderful.

There was one of them close together, Solomon’s hand on his hip and Asmo’s on Solomon’s chest.

One of their foreheads pressed together with their eyes just barely opened, which was quickly followed by one of Solomon kissing his forehead. 

In each one, there was nothing but adoration in his eyes as the snow fell softly around them. It was all so gentle, so serene, so magical. And Asmo got to experience it. It made his throat tighten. Solomon was perfect for him, almost too perfect.

Asmo buried his head into the side of Solomon’s chest, making him turn his head and look down at him ever so slightly. “You alright? Do you need me to get you something?” he asked.

A small bubbly laugh escaped him for a moment, the one Solomon adored oh so much, and he shook his head. “Oh, no I don’t need anything,” he said softly, “I just love you. I  _ love  _ you Solomon.”

“I love you too.”

Asmo’s heart fluttered and he looked up. “Never leave, okay? Stay with me. Right here.”

“I wouldn’t dream of leaving you,” Solomon started, leaning over to peck at Asmo’s lips, “Not in a bajillion years.”

“Not even a  _ hundred billion? _ ”

Another peck.

“Not even then,” Solomon wrapped his arms around Asmo and held him close, and Asmo didn’t resist. He gave in to the warmth, the love, every feeling coursing through him in this moment right now. He couldn’t bring himself to deny these wonderful feelings any longer, and he had no reason to. Solomon was giving everything to him, everything Asmo had ever wanted. Everytime Solomon kissed him was better than anything Asmo had ever imagined, everything he said was utter euphoria, and every glance was a tiny piece of heaven. “I love you Asmodeus, and I always will. No matter what happens, I love you.”

And for the first time in a long time, Asmo believed it.

For the first time in a long time, Asmo didn’t need secrets.

For the first time in a long time, Asmo knew what it was to be adored.

For the first time in a long time, Asmo knew love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been really excited for these last two chapters for a long time. I've had them planned since the beginning and I couldn't wait to post them. I hope you all enjoyed it and that you will also enjoy the last update (which will be posted a week from now). Thank you all so much.


	12. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is. The last chapter of WBT. I can't thank you all enough for sticking with me and reading through this story. It means so much to me. Thank you all so so so incredibly much for everything. I had a really fun time writing this! I also hope that I can do more little oneshots with this au in the future (also may or may not be in the process of doing exactly that now). 
> 
> If you want to find me to talk or make a request you can find me on Tumblr @ruewrites.

Asmo stood on the balcony listening to the soft crash of the ocean in the distance. He leaned against the railing, wine in hand and ring glinting in the moonlight. Everything was so perfect,so peaceful, so serene. Not even the birds dared to break the silence. He’d need to send out thank you notes. Everyone had put so much thought into their gifts for them, and the notes from his brothers had brought tears to his eyes. But he could focus on that later once he got home. For now he would relish in this moment. 

Arms curled around his middle and lips slowly made their way from the base of his neck up to his jaw line. “Are you going to stay on the balcony all night?”

Asmo chuckled, feeling Solomon’s grip on him tighten slightly. “It’s nice out, and I’m not going to get a view like this back home.” A shudder ran through him as Solomon’s lips started traveling back to his neck. Ever so slightly, he tugged down the collar of Asmo’s robe to reveal a dark purple spot on the junction of his neck and shoulder. Asmo could still feel every wonderful movement that led to his hickey. How his fingers had twitched above his head, Solomon’s hot breath against his skin, the fluid motion of his hips. It made Asmo shudder in the best of ways. 

“It looks better with you out here,” he murmured against soft skin, “You make any place a miraculous view.” Asmo had to put his wine down as Solomon went straight back up to his lips. Asmo’s arms tangled around his neck as Solomon dipped him slightly. 

How did he get here?

Solomon pulled back ever so slightly. He was still so close. Asmo could practically feel his smirk against him. “ _ My beautiful husband _ ,” he murmured softly. It made Asmo blush, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away.

“Who I promise to love, adore, and cherish for all of my life,” he murmured in between kisses that travelled from his lips down to his shoulder, and back up again, “Who’s laugh brings joy to my very core, who takes my breath away whenever he walks into the room. I promise to fuel his passions, be the flint to the sparkle in his eyes, and to wipe away tears whenever they fall.”

Solomon’s fingers brushed against his cheek gently, as tears rolled from his eyes. “If you keep reciting your wonderful vows to me, I will start crying again,” he smiled, bringing Solomon down to him once more. They had always been a touchy couple. One of his brothers threatened to sit in between them at the reception. Asmo couldn’t remember which one, he’d been too busy mooning over his husband. He did know that Lucifer had stopped the two of them from disappearing from their own wedding multiple times. Only for Diavolo to ask him if it was such a crime for the newlyweds to want to be alone together, he himself should have been familiar with the feeling. After all, they had years to make up for. Years in which they hadn’t been together. Years in which they had made excuses. Years in which they were too scared to say a thing. 

They had to make up for it, there was no other option.

Asmo felt his feet leave the ground and he let out a yelp. Solomon had quite literally swept him off of his feet and was carrying him through the double doors of the balcony and into their room. “Nooooo, my wiiiine,” Asmo whined, reaching out for his glass that was still on the balcony. 

“I’ll grab it for you love, but I do believe that I’m a little more deserving of your attention.”

“Well it’s a good night for wine.”

“It’s also a good night to spoil a husband.”

Solomon carefully let go of Asmo’s legs, letting him sit on the bed before going back out to get the forgotten glass. It really was a nice honeymoon suite. When they’d first arrived there were towels folded into the shape of swans on the bed surrounded by rose petals, balloons had been tied to their bedpost, and their tub had been surrounded by candles. To top it all off, they had a lovely view of the perfect clean beach below. 

“I’m so happy I bought that ring,” Solomon murmured, handing Asmo the glass. Asmo let him take his free hand to kiss as he sipped at his drink. He had genuinely thought that Solomon was going to ask if they could take a break when he proposed. After all, with the transition into his post grad program and struggling to find internships at the time, Asmo wouldn’t have blamed him. Things were stressful. He’d had a knot in his stomach for weeks before the proposal thinking that Solomon was going to cut things off with him. He was ready to go out to buy a ring himself. He’d never been so tense in his life when Solomon asked him to go out that night. He’d prepared himself to beg and plead. To promise Solomon that they could make it work even if he didn’t believe it deep down. Because he was scared that if they went on a break, they’d never get back together. 

When Solomon had proposed instead of doing any of the other terrifying things Asmo had prepared himself for, he’d burst into tears. Honestly, everyone had probably been looking at them, Asmo hadn’t been quiet, and it hadn’t been graceful sobbing. Meanwhile Solomon had been frozen, completely terrified that he’d done something wrong.

As if Solomon ever could do wrong.

As if Asmo would ever say no. 

His social media had been filled with pictures of his engagement ring along with photos of him and Solomon together. Asmo’s eyes had been a little wet throughout most of the pictures, but he didn’t mind. His engagement ring was also something he wanted to show off every chance he got. His hands were a little more animated than usual, his left always on top of his right when folded. Why shouldn’t he show it off? After all, Solomon had clearly spent quite a bit of money on it, and it was gorgeous. Asmo had made sure to take care of it so it shined brighter than the stars in the sky. He’d made sure Solomon knew how much he loved it, and how much he loved him. 

Sure they had to keep the fiance title for a while, but oh was their wedding worth the wait. This was all worth the wait. Asmo wouldn’t have had it any other way. 

“I’m surprised you did.”

“I had the money, that’s never been an issue.”

“I know, it’s just-”

“Hey,” Solomon stopped him in his tracks, and tilted his chin upwards, “I love you okay? I wouldn’t have proposed if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have said what I did if I didn’t mean it. You’re special Asmodeus. So special, that I was afraid you wouldn’t say yes. I don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t say yes.”

“I would be brainless to say anything  _ but  _ yes,” Asmo countered.

Solomon hummed and pressed their foreheads together, “And I love that about you, that my husband is a very smart man, he’s also an incredibly talented man.”

Asmo yanked his husband forward back into their kiss and they fell over. He couldn’t get enough of Solomon, their lips only parted enough to whisper soft ‘I love you’s before coming right back together. Solomon tried to pull back a little further, meeting resistance from Asmo. 

“Darling, I need to breathe.” The breathlessness in his voice made Asmo shudder. 

“Haven’t you had enough practice baby? I am  _ breathtaking _ after all.”

Solomon snorted as Asmo drew him back in. It was his fault that such cheesy things left Asmo’s lips. The entire time they’d been dating had been filled with Solomon’s terrible pick up lines along with awful nicknames.

Was there anything more perfect? Asmo didn’t think there was any better lifetime he could have been more wonderful. He didn’t think he could live any other life time without Solomon. Life would be so much emptier without him.

Asmo felt Solomon brush his fingers not-so-innocently between his shoulder blades. It was just enough pressure to cause Asmo to make the sweetest, shortest, little moan. Oh the things Solomon had discovered while they were dating. The accidental touch here or there, a response, and then repeat. Solomon had made this particular discovery during a make out session earlier on in their relationship. He could still see the way Asmo had squirmed and gasped on his lap as he touched him over and over and over again. He was adorable. He was beautiful. For Asmo, having a partner that cared about him and wanted to make him feel wonderful in any situation was a pleasant change. He was more than happy with the fact that Solomon was the partner that became his spouse. Asmo knew he was with someone that would care for him and pay attention.

Then there was the gentle tug on the ribbon of his robe. It was slight, but just enough for Asmo to feel it. “Again?” he murmured playfully, tapping Solomon’s nose, “What will we tell people if they learn that we went on this extravagant trip for our honeymoon only to stay in bed the entire time?”

“We’ll tell them that I was giving my  _ husband  _ the love and attention he deserved,” Solomon chuckled. One of the silk ends of the ribbon rolled through his fingers slowly, mimicking the waves of the ocean outside their room. “And can you really blame me? I can’t get the way you looked out of my mind… The entire reception… When we got here, you looked so  _ beautiful _ , and even now,” he sighed, brushing their lips together, “My husband. My  _ wonderfully perfect  _ **_husband_ ** .” 

Asmo loved the way those words sounded against Solomon’s lips, He honestly couldn’t tell if he was getting drunk off of the wine or Solomon himself. 

“Oh  _ Solomon _ , you  _ dog _ ,” he squealed, chastising Solomon with a playful swat to his husband’s back as he latched onto his neck, hands scrunching up his robe at his hips. Not that he minded. No. He  _ loved  _ it when Solomon touched him, especially like this. He loved the feeling of being wanted, of being  _ craved _ . A small noise left Asmo as he tilted his head a bit to give Solomon better access to his neck. Every movement was just right, just how Asmo liked it. “Haven’t you marked me up enough already? I thought we wanted to go down to the beach tomorrow.”

Maybe Solomon was the one drunk on him.

“Just one more-”

“That’s what you said with the last one.”

“I want everyone to know that someone loves you more than anything. Plus, you can be covered, we don’t  _ have  _ to go swimming. The ocean is overrated anyways.”

Asmo snorted.

The only reason the two of them had come here for their honeymoon was because they had agreed it was rather romantic, but Solomon’s one condition was that he would not step foot in the ocean. He couldn’t help but shake his head, nails working up to Solomon’s head to massage and gently scratch at his scalp. He swore he felt Solomon shudder and then go limp for a moment. 

“I almost forgot you got your nails done.” Solomon’s voice was hot against his neck, and he could feel his lashed fluttering against his soft (and now marked) skin. 

“Specially done for our special day.”

“They feel nice.”

“Oh you’re  _ adorable _ .”

“My husband spoils me too much.”

Asmo stopped and leaned back a bit. Solomon mirrored his movements and propped himself up on his elbows. He cocked his head to the side, as if to ask what was running through his head.

“I swear, if you call me ‘my husband’ one more time, I’m going to burst.” Everytime Asmo thought he was in full bloom, another petal or two started to unfurl.

“Oh? Is that not who you are Mr. Asmodeus?” Asmo swore his heart stopped, as the words slipped past Solomon’s lips. He almost didn’t process the way Solomon crawled on top of him, eyes locked, and forcing Asmo into the plush pillows beneath them. “Is my Asmodeus, my dear, darling, light of my life, little strawberry, baby, sweetheart Asmodeus, not my adored husband?”

Oh this was  _ so  _ not fair. It wasn’t fair how quickly Asmo’s mouth dried out or how his brain immediately decided to stop working at that moment. And it  _ certainly  _ wasn’t fair that his cheeks were almost positively perfectly pink. Especially not when his husband was being a dork on purpose. He turned his face into the pillow closest to him and screamed. “ _ How _ are you so hot? It’s not fair. You don’t even try! Especially when you’re purposefully trying to say the most unsexy things in the world!”

“But pooki, you react to it oh so-” Solomon got a pillow right to the face, followed quickly by a flurry of pillow smacks. Solomon laughed as he tried to shield himself from his husband’s fluffy fury.

“Why. Are. You. Like. This?” he pouted before dropping the pillow and sitting on the edge of their bed. He turned his attention away from Solomon and to a little bowl of candies next to the bed. He unwrapped on and popped it in his mouth. After a few moments before he felt the bed shift. Solomon’s head was resting on his shoulder and his arms were tightly wrapped around his waist. Without a word, Asmo unwrapped another candy and pushed it past Solomon’s lips. “No more  _ awful  _ pet names,” he murmured, kissing Solomon’s cheek.

Of course much sappier little nicknames had been exchanged at their reception. They had been playing with each other’s rings, swapping sickeningly sweet words quietly, sometimes they would laugh. Even when they split up to go greet their guests their eyes wanted the tables until they found each other. If they didn’t meet, they would stand there and admire the other until they looked up and noticed. Eventually they met once more at one of the guest tables and their hands immediately met once more. Belphie made a gagging noise at one point, signalling that the two of them were getting a little too mushy.

“You’re not on your honeymoon yet,” he’d said, making a few of his other brothers laugh. Even now, if Solomon was overdoing it, Asmo had to admit some part of him deep down still loved it and Solomon knew it. 

He felt Solomon’s grip tighten. “But my  _ darling _ , how can I possibly stop?” he smiled, “Especially when you’re oh so wonderful my dear. You make my heart soar.” 

Asmo shoved another candy into Solomon’s mouth before untangling himself from Solomon and looking for his suitcase under the bed. “Whatever am I going to do with you? After this I’m going to be moving in with my sappy husband who loves to spoil me with morning kisses before he has to start his day. And every morning I fall for him all over again,” he hummed. It had to be in here somewhere. He knew he brought it. He’d made  _ sure  _ he’d packed everything before he left. Just what did he want to show first was the question.

“Oh?” Asmo felt a hand caress underneath his jaw and the side of his face. Solomon had his signature smirk on his face, the one that made Asmo melt. He just had such a powerful energy around him. It was addictive and flooded all of Asmo’s senses. “Are you saying you aren’t just as sappy and loving my Asmodeus?”

“Now I never said that,” Asmo smiled, learning into his touch, “It’s just that  _ you’re  _ the one who got a tattoo pretty soon after we started dating.” He reached up to touch the area where he knew he’d had Solomon put his tattoo. He’d had more than enough time to study Solomon’s tattoos before deciding where he wanted his. It looked nice on his sternum, Asmo had made sure it would. He was Solomon’s center and always close to his heart, so the position was fitting. Countless nights and a lot of wasted paper finally resulted in something that Asmo had been happy with. It didn’t include his name, but it was unique and pretty and perfectly Asmo. 

“True, but  _ you’re  _ the one who has designs based off how  _ in love  _ you are with me,” Solomon teased, flopping on his stomach to get closer to Asmo. 

“I’m not the only one in love,” he giggled, letting Solomon peck his lips once, twice, again. He could feel Solomon’s hand leave his face and trace whatever part of his body he could reach. He knew every inch of Asmo, and the way his fingers traced out long memorized curves and edges was divine. Solomon really did know him inside and out, he knew every last little detail, he was attentive, and Asmo adored him.

However, he had something he wanted to show Solomon. He made a small noise, before pulling away from Solomon’s lips so he could go through his suitcase once more. It didn’t take long before he found exactly what he’d been looking for. 

“But, I do have something I’d like to show you.” 

Asmo opened up one of his older sketch pads and held the image out to Solomon. It had taken him forever to finally finish this project, but he couldn’t have been happier with it. There were two outfits on the page, and Asmo had made sure that they both complemented and contrasted each other. One was dark and sharp, filled with blues and blacks. The other was softer and bright, filled with yellows and pinks. Both were modeled after flowers in one way or another, and both had petals decorating the outside outlines in silver and gold respectively. They balanced each other out and brought out the beauty in each other.

“I started it before we started dating. I might make an alteration or two, I’m thinking about calling it  _ Blooming Together _ , or something along those lines,” he said, “I thought you might like it.” He watched as Solomon’s fingers ghosted over the outlines of the art. 

“And why might I like it?”

Oh he wanted him to say it. Not that Asmo minded, he loved telling Solomon how much he loved him. It came like a second nature to him. He’d started saying ‘I love you’ to Solomon before they were even together.

“Well, like you said before, I often base some of my designs off of how in love I am with you,” Asmo said. Solomon was one of his favorite muses. He’d never known one person could make him feel so much before, yet here he was. “I would hope you’d like anything you were an inspiration for.” Asmo put the pile of things in his hand on the nightstand before crawling back up to join Solomon, and he was quickly reminded how he hadn’t been able to avoid Solomon’s lips since they’d said their vows. A slew of laughter escaped him as Solomon went to work once more, lips meeting every inch of soft skin they could possibly find, and then more as quick hands manipulated the silky robe. The fabric moved easily out of his way, allowing him to reach every part of Asmo he wanted. Asmo’s nails gently raked against ink covered skin, drawing another content hum from Solomon. 

How did he get here?

“You know I love anything you do,” Solomon murmured, pressing another kiss on Asmo’s body. “How could I not when you put so much passion and effort into everything you do? I’ve always loved that about you, you know, your  _ passion _ .” 

Asmo nodded, eyes fluttering shut as Solomon continued his work. Each touch set him ablaze, sending a warmth through Asmo that he had never felt with anyone else. Everyone around them had given them their best wishes for a happy marriage, but Asmo didn’t think they needed wishes. He and Solomon knew where they stood with each other, and Asmo couldn’t imagine their future as anything but happy. Sure, he had been insecure about his place in Solomon’s life, but Solomon proved those doubts wrong time and time again. Solomon loved everything about him, everything he thought no one would ever care about. There was so much to Asmo, and Solomon made sure he paid attention to every little detail. Asmo wrapped his legs around Solomon’s waist before falling backwards and reaching for his things on the nightstand. 

“You know I still have evidence of how much my husband  _ loves  _ me. I wasn’t the only one pining before we got together,” Asmo said, gently bopping Solomon’s forehead with worn pink envelopes. Asmo had taken care of them and always kept them safe. He watched Solomon’s eyes widen as the recognition crossed his face. That little recognition made Asmo smile, and hand the letters over to Solomon. “I’ve always wanted to hear you read them to me you know, sometimes I imagined your voice when I read them over.”

Solomon took the letters, “You kept them.”

“Of course I did.”

“And you brought them with you.”

“Like I said, I’d always wanted to hear you read them. Why not on our honeymoon, it would be so  _ romantic _ ,” Asmo sighed, leaning back again. He was a sucker for romance, he always had been, and Solomon knew this. 

With a chuckle, Solomon started moving their position, being mindful of the letters in his hands. He grinned and motioned for Asmo to come closer. Instead of gently scooting over, Asmo jumped into Solomon’s arms, the playful atmosphere still surrounding them. After a flurry of kisses and laughter, Asmo finally settled in the crook of Solomon’s arm with his head resting on his chest. The steady drumming of his heartbeat lulling him into comfort.

Solomon cleared in his throat for show, making Asmo roll his eyes, before he read off the first words of the letter, “How could any person ever glow so brightly?” His voice rumbled through his chest, as he read the letters. Every now and again he’d pause to kiss Asmo’s forehead or interject with another thought he had. Asmo’s eyes sparkled all while listening to the words.

How did he get here?

Well, Asmo knew how. The feelings in his chest were undeniable. He just couldn’t believe that he had something like this, something so wonderful. It seemed like a dream. Like a beautiful fantasy. Solomon was the best thing Asmo ever could have asked for. 

He got here because Solomon was  _ home _ . Solomon had promised Asmo that they’d be together forever, and he made good on that promise. Every morning he’d be able to wake up and see his  _ husband _ , come home to his  _ husband _ , get lunch with his  _ husband _ , text his  _ husband  _ when he couldn’t see him, and sleep next to his  _ husband _ . Solomon was his  _ husband  _ now. Solomon loved Asmo and wanted to be with him for the rest of their lives.

Solomon wanted to be with Asmo, and Asmo wanted to be with Solomon. 

They were meant to be together, and Asmo knew there was nowhere else he’d rather be. 

By the time Solomon finished the last letter, Asmo’s eyes were lowered and a wide soft smile crossed his face. Solomon was his entire world. The mere thought of him would make Asmo’s honey colored eyes would sparkle with pure adoration. Solomon met his gaze. The only word he could have used to describe Solomon in that moment was spellbound. Slowly, Asmo found his hand, and started to play with the ring on Solomon’s finger, refusing to break eye contact with his husband. Solomon brought him closer, starting to mirror Asmo’s expression.

“I meant every word,” Solomon said softly, “And I still mean all of that. Sometimes I still wonder if my words truly did you justice.” Solomon’s other hand caressed his figure. Solomon’s touches were soothing despite his cold hands. Sometimes Asmo would still jump, especially if Solomon shoved his hands under his shirt on purpose, but that didn’t mean he loved his little touches any less.

“Even if you didn’t, your love does more than make up for it. You give me everything I could ever ask for and more than I ever could have imagined. The fact that I have you is enough for me.”

Asmo nuzzled underneath his chin and held him closer. He wasn’t always sure how he got here, or what he did to deserve this, but he did know that Solomon was his. He felt Solomon kiss the top of his head and bury his nose in his soft hair. This was perfect. This was the life he’d always wanted. This was the future he’d always dreamed of. As Solomon held him close, Asmo couldn’t help but let go. He wasn’t so much falling as he was floating. There was a vast and endless love surrounding him, one that was warm and comforting and that Solomon constantly surrounded him with. He lifted up his head ever so slightly to press light butterfly kisses against Solomon’s neck and jaw. He wanted to express everything he was feeling and words simply lacked the complexity of what he wanted to say. Solomon lifted his head to look down at Asmo, hand moving up to caress his cheek before his fingers slipped underneath his chin to tilt his head up. Slowly he leaned in, letting his lips move gently against Asmo’s. They molded together perfectly, everything about this was perfect. They were moving gently against each other, there was intent behind the movements, but nothing about it was either vigorous nor hasty. Asmo had never felt so vulnerable with another person before, never enough to bear everything he was to them. But Solomon took every piece or him, every soft petal, and held it close to his heart. This was what Asmo deserved, and nothing less. 

Even when the movement of their lips halted, they didn’t halt, foreheads gently coming together. No matter how close they were, they always craved more. 

“I love you Solomon.” 

“I love you too Asmodeus.”

The words exchanged between them were soft, almost at a whisper. It was as if they were exchanging the most precious of secrets between each other and trying to keep the world from listening. It was beautiful, absolute bliss had never felt so perfect before. The world outside could disappear. Nothing else mattered except for the man in front of him. No matter what happened everything would be okay as long as he had Solomon by his side.

The love of his life.

His Solomon.

His  _ husband _ . 

Things would be okay with Solomon. Things would be more than okay with Solomon. He’d be safe, and adored, and loved with Solomon. Solomon would protect his heart and help him explore every wonder of life that there was to see.This thing that they had together was special, and Asmo knew that they would protect it, nourish it, and help it grow and bloom together. 

The moon glowed softly outside, reflecting against the waves which gently caressed the shore outside. The entire world was quiet. Not a single soul dared to disturb the two lovers, who were tucked away from the rest of the world with only moonlight as their witness. For now they could focus on each other and revel in the start of the newest chapter of their life together. A chapter filled with little wonders and an ever flowering love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was more of a little treat than anything. They deserve to be happy.
> 
> Since this chapter came out of the 25th, consider it my Christmas present to you~
> 
> (Now I must go listen to Pomade because it was just released!)


End file.
